Mirror
by Raebelle
Summary: Can you ever truly conquer your demons? Rin is trapped between opposite worlds: the First, a hellish prison, the Second, a safe, loving haven. But as she clings on to the Second World, new mysteries unfold themselves. Endless questions arise: which is the real World? Where does Rin belong? And what does the mysterious Len Kagamine have to do with it? Rin X Len noncest
1. Reversed

**Hello, everybody. Welcome to probably my last work before I die in the most horrible prison/ torture camp known to mankind: school. Hahahaha. Just kidding. If I die, I'll turn into a creepy ghost and continue writing. XD**

 **DISCLAIMER: I don't own Vocaloid. :(**

 **This is _Mirror,_ "Chapter 1." And...ACTION!**

* * *

Happily chatting amongst themselves, the teenage students discussed and re-discussed what fun activities they were going to do at the spring field trip, which was going to be at a carnival. Some of them idly doodled, dozed, or scrolled through their phones. A warm summer breeze drifted in through the bus's open windows, giving them a drowsy but contented feeling.

Lazily, I rested my head on his shoulder. He lifted a warm, gentle hand and stroked my hair, making me blush and turn my light blue eyes to his own cerulean ones. Both of us smiled.

The moment was absolutely perfect. Surrounded by all of my friends on this fateful, seemingly fortunate day and together with the boy I loved, I closed my eyes and hoped that this moment could last forever.

I wished that my life would always be like this. Childish, right?

As the saying goes, "nothing lasts forever." So the love that everyone shined upon me turned to hate, and so my friends became enemies. So my loving family turned their backs on me, so I became alone in the world, so I…

It wasn't my fault. It was…

Chaos, panic, and terror filled the bus now. Everything was blurred by the suffocating smoke that bloomed in the air. He immediately leapt up and leaned over me, shielding my body from the flying pieces of shrapnel. I protested, not wanting him to be hurt because of me. But he didn't listen, and continued to protect me.

Later, the rescuers would find, in the bus that drove off a cliff: a dead teacher, dead students, and one dead student hunched protectively over a girl.

I didn't die.

Instead, he was the one who did.

I was saved, and everyone else was hurt. I survived, and everyone else didn't.

Yes, it _was_ my fault.

Why? Why couldn't my happiness last? It was so perfect…

 _And then, everything was reversed…_

* * *

 **Chapter One: _Reversed_**

 **Rin's POV:**

Wincing in pain, I clutched my bruised side and staggered towards my dorm in the abandoned school corridors. Classes had ended hours ago, but like always, I took the long way back to my bedroom in order to avoid the group of teenagers that enjoyed seeing my blood on their hands. I didn't mind, anyway; the girls whom I shared the dorm with bullied me too. Everyone in the school did; even teachers treated me with disdain.

Everyone I knew hated me.

Still, I always tried my best to keep on standing up and surviving. I hoped that, someday, things would reverse. Maybe if I kept on hoping, my life would eventually get better.

Of course, I knew that a miracle wouldn't happen. I couldn't expect anyone or anything to magically pop in and save me. Somehow, I had always been comforted by the thought that if anyone ever helped me, it would be myself.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps behind me. Abruptly jerking to a halt, I turned around and saw them. Their faces leered at me maliciously, appearing even more intimidating in the semi-darkness of the empty hallway. Instinctively, I turned on my heels and fled, increasing my speed when I realized that I was being chased.

"Where do you think you're going, loser?"

I had no idea where to run. Turning many corners and scurrying down staircases, I tried to shake my tormentors off, but instead, they gained on me. After all, I already had many injuries from previous encounters with them.

"Don't be such a bratty coward! Stay and talk to us!"

I flung open a door and ran outside, onto the school courtyard. I planned to lead them outside and loop back into the building. If I was lucky, I could report this incident and head back to my dorm safely.

I wasn't lucky.

Only a few meters outside the doors, I found myself being surrounded by the other students in a semi-circle. My short blonde hair plastered to my sweaty face and my bruised ribs hurt even more as I gasped for air. Like wolves, they seemed to smell my fear and closed in on me even more.

"Just admit it, ugly, you can't run from us."

Trembling, I desperately backed away from them and felt my back being pressed by the rough trunk of a tree. Looking up at the straggly branches, I suddenly remembered that it was the very same tree in which my friends and I had climbed together when we were younger and always used as a rendezvous spot.

 _No, Rin, you can't remember that now._ It was all I could do to suppress my tears as I was painfully reminded, once again, that this very group of bullies used to be my best friends.

One of the teenagers stepped forward and smirked. She flipped her long teal pigtails over her shoulder, and I involuntarily flinched at the nostalgic memory of two young girls braiding their hair for each other. "You're really cute. Thinking you can escape us like that. At least _try_ to fight back. We're bored and we need to have some fun."

Everyone laughed. I glared at her, mentally shouting at myself to not let my tears spill.

Suddenly, someone roughly picked me up by my dirty collar and rammed my head against the trunk. "What're _you_ looking at?" The tall boy widened his eyes malevolently. He used to be like an older brother to me, always goofing off but protecting me from harm in hard times. Now, _he_ was the harm.

I gritted my teeth in pain and humiliation.

"Answer me!" He shook me violently.

"Let her down, Kaito-kun. I think she broke." The teal-haired girl drawled. He thrust me onto the leaf-strewn ground, stepping aside as she came forward and grabbed me by my hair.

Leaning towards me, she snarled dangerously. "Why don't you scream? If you admit you're a sniveling coward and beg for mercy, I promise that we'll leave you alone."

Behind her, I saw four other teenagers. From recent encounters with them, I knew that two of them owned switchblades, and, judging by the amount of scars on my body, they could use them extremely well.

"Say something already! Just-ah-"

Letting out a loud yell, I rammed my head into the girl's face, causing her to topple backwards into another girl with long pink hair.

I quickly stood up and held my fists up to my face. "Five on one, huh? And you say _I'm_ the cowardly one?"

Yes, I was completely outnumbered. But if I was going to be beaten up, I might as well give _them_ a few black eyes and cuts too.

"Say that again, wimp!" The girl lunged forwards and punched me in the gut, making me black out for a moment. In that moment, another teenager took the opportunity and slammed me against the tree trunk once again.

As I struggled under his vice-like grip, he brought out his prized blade, which glinted in the moonlight evilly.

Then, he brought it down.

* * *

"Five people, you say? With weapons? Why didn't you report this earlier?" The school councilor asked coldly.

"I did, sir. This is just the first time that you've been available." I explained calmly, fingering the new bandages I got from the nurse's office. They were too loose; I knew that I would have to adjust them when I got back to my dorm. "It's been like this for six months, ever since we came back from the Sakura Carnival field trip. I kept on trying to report to the office and even left a few messages, but I never got a response or appointment until now."

"I see."

"And, also, it's actually _six_ people who mainly did the bullying. Although, my roommates and classmates contribute too. "

"Names? Of the six main bullies?" He briskly turned to his laptop. Hopefully, it was to record the information I was about to gave him.

"The worst by far is Len Kagamine. He goes much farther than anyone else does. Except yesterday; he wasn't there."

"One of his teachers informed me that he had detention. Go on."

"Miku Hatsune. Kaito Shion. Luka Megurine. Meiko Sakine. Gackupo Kamui. "

The adult nodded, eying me coolly once again. "Thank you for your time. I'll call all of these students' parents and inform them that something like this happens again, suspension will occur. You may leave now."

My eyes widened in frustration. Didn't he understand how serious it was? I could be dead the next day, and I had to rely on a few phone calls between unknowing adults. "What? But-"

"Have a nice day, Miss Kagami."

* * *

When I entered my dorm, my three roommates were seated comfortable on their beds, dressed in their pajamas and engaged in conversation with each other. They immediately stopped talking when they spotted me and stared. Though I didn't like it, I couldn't blame them; the sight of a girl covered in bloody bandages must have looked pretty strange.

One of the girls slipped down from her bunk and strode towards me in confident steps. Her choppy green hair contrasted with her pale face, making her look terrifying in the warm glow of the room's lamps. " _Rin-chan_ , how are you?" She placed a mocking emphasis on my name.

"I'm fine," I replied shortly. I tried to reach my own bed, which was on top of hers, but she blocked me and smirked. The other two girls giggled. I tried not to scowl, but then realized that I couldn't anyway, thanks to an annoyingly big bandage on my cheek.

"You're fine? You don't look fine! Did someone beat you up for being the ugly pest that you are?" said another girl in a sickly sweet voice. She was texting rapidly on her phone just moments before, no doubt about how much she hated me. I was afraid that she was going to take a photo of me or something.

"Hey! You heard Neru! Say something!"

I wasn't just hated by the group of tormentors who attacked me every day after school. Everyone else who knew me enjoyed seeing me in pain and humiliation. Nobody here cared about me.

I was all alone.

"Hey! Stop spacing out! Does that mean that you _admit_ you're ugly?"

Gritting my teeth, I angrily shoved the girl in front of me. She slammed into a bedpost with a loud, satisfying _thunk._ My other two roommates gasped. Before their shock turned to anger, I whirled around and marched into the bathroom.

When the school nurse had placed on my bandages, she was trying her best to hurry, not wanting to waste time on a "foolish child who got what she deserved in her own little skirmishes." I had to check on my wounds and rewrap the bandages. After all, the adults never gave me any second glances, despite of my desperate pleads for help.

Even my own family didn't care. Whenever I phoned them about my troubles, my parents would tell me to try to act more friendly and polite, as if the bullying was my own fault. Any more talk on the subject would irate them. My older brother only joked about it, sayings things like "I guess we don't have to buy you a mummy costume this Halloween" and "Just watch some martial arts videos or something." It was even sadder because in my younger years, we were practically inseparable.

I looked at my bruised, scratched face in the mirror and sighed. I was petite and small with a chalky, almost ghostly complexion. My straggly silver-blonde hair was unkempt, since I couldn't be bothered to cut it, and hung over my face in messy clumps. The first thing anyone saw when looking at me, however, would be my emotionless, dull blue eyes. Sometimes, it seemed, they were so cold and lifeless that I intimidated some people. I didn't know if that was a good or bad thing.

"How long will this go on?" I muttered to the empty space. My reflections' eyes stared icily back, clouded over by fear, anger, and desperation. If only I had someone who loved me. It didn't need to be a knight in shining armor or whatever.

I just wanted…a friend. I wanted, _needed,_ a friend who wouldn't abandon me.

Clenching my trembling hand into a fist, I drew it back and suddenly screamed shrilly, no doubt startling the girls in the dorm. I didn't care. Venting all of my frustration into my hand, I struck the glass as hard as I could and shattered it. Like beautiful crystals, the glass fragments sprinkled down and mixed with the scarlet drops oozing from my bleeding hand. They reflected broken fragments of light that leapt onto the walls in dazzling patterns of rainbow.

Looking down, I was dazed by the crystals. They pulled me into a trance and seemed to almost lull me to sleep. If I slept, I would never have to face those monsters again. I wouldn't have to be reminded of our broken friendships.

My consciousness shattered.

* * *

When I next woke up, I was in a dimly lit hospital room. Did my roommates actually help me to the nurse's office? They wouldn't. If they saw me on the floor, bleeding amidst the pieces of a broken mirror, they would either kick me or report me to the principle for "vandalism." At best they would probably take a few photos of my pathetic state and then leave me lying there on the floor to bleed to death.

After a few drowsy moments of being lost in my thoughts, I realized that someone was holding my hand. Instantly, I was wide awake. It had been a long time since anyone had held my hand, especially so gently. Who was it? It must have either been a hallucination or a prank.

Turning my head (which was covered in more bandages) to look at the person, I became so shocked upon seeing their face that I was momentarily paralyzed.

The teenage boy was sitting in a chair drawn up to my bed. He looked like he had sat next to my bed for hours, just to watch over me. His eyes were closed in light slumber, and his golden hair had fallen out of its usual ponytail. There was a slight smile on his face, giving him an expression so innocent and childish that I almost didn't recognize him. When conscious, he never showed anything to me except cruel smirks and sadistic eyes. My lips quivered as I heard him mumble my name in his sleep.

Len Kagamine used to be one of my best friends. No, he wasn't a friend. He was much, much, more than that. I admit that I loved him, with all my heart. How could I not, when he was so sweet and gentle?

But, like everyone else, he left me. He hurt me. And because I loved him more than anyone else, because he knew me the best, he hurt me the most.

I knew that he would hurt me even more in the future.

I harshly yanked my hand out of his, causing him to jerk awake and stare at me. This was the same boy who had received my heart and trodden on it until it was shattered, like the mirror that I broke. Thanks to him, my life was worth than death.

"Don't touch me." I snapped coldly.

He had hurt me so. He hurt me, he hurt me, he hurt me. So why did I feel a small tinge of guilt when I saw his look of hurt at my tone?

"R-rin?"

 _And then, everything was reversed…_

* * *

 **Rin: Why, Rika-chan? Why do I have to be bullied so much?**

 **Me: Calm down. I still made you strong and optimistic.**

 **Len: That's not fair! How come you made me an antagonist?!**

 **Me: Just be patient, my young friend, and wait for the next chapter. Muhahahahahahahaha-**

 **-hahahahaha...yeah. The little blurb in the front wasn't a mistake, fyi. You know how some authors put a little paragraph thingy before the book actually starts? Yeah. Lol. Xd**

 **Please review, everyone, and stay tuned for Chapter 2! Thank you!**


	2. Joke

**OMG, has it really been 4 months already? I'm so, so, SO sorry! I hate school! Like, is it even humane to be forced to sleep friggin' THREE HOURS EVERY NIGHT? IS IT? UGHHHHH!**

 **DISCLAIMER: DO I LOOK LIKE I OWN VOCALOID? DO I?! *heavy breathing***

 **P.S. PPD is Paranoid Personality disorder. Schizophrenia is another personality disorder where you basically can't tell between real and fake. Go google it. Also, I was too lazy to do any research for this, so everything is from my limited mental library of stuff. Lol. Sorry for the quality.**

* * *

I can feel blood gushing from my open wounds. My head is swimming with pain, muffling the sounds of the strangled cries of terror from the others. In the distance, I can see smoke from the corner of my stinging eyes – smoke billowing from the crashed school bus. The fall down the cliff smashed it into pieces; it doesn't even look like a bus anymore.

Is everybody else alright? I try to raise my head to look, but gasp in pain. My whole body feels like it's on fire, but it's also numb at the same time. The girl besides me is still, body lying motionless on the ground. Is she alright? If only I could see her…

She abruptly sits up and turns around to look at me. Gasping in horror, she kneels over me and strokes my forehead.

It's a wonder that I can still breathe; I've never been in so much pain before. Dimly, I sense her tearing off pieces of her shirt and trying to soak up the blood gushing out of my wounds. I try to make a reassuring gesture, to speak to her, to show her that I'm fine, but I'm can't. I can't move at all anymore. In fact, the pain is fading…as if I'm…

Why is she still trying to help me? It's too late.

She mouths my name urgently, but no sound comes out - at least, not that I can hear. In fact, the screams of my panicked classmates and teachers have subsided, and I can't see or feel the smoke billowing from the crashed school bus anymore. Everything's fading away.

Her face is cut all over and her eyes are swollen – from both smoke and tears. But she's alive. She's alive, so I'm happy. Her expression has sorrow and pain written all over, but that's just solid evidence that she's alive…it's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. As long as Rin is alive, I-

"Len!"

* * *

 **Chapter Two: _Joke_**

 **Rin's POV:**

"R-rin?"

At his words, I started to black out. His shocked face shimmered before my eyes like a mirage.

"Are you okay? Just…wait here, alright? I'll go get someone…" The distorted sound of the boy's panicked footsteps gradually faded away.

Blinking rapidly, I took deep breaths to collect myself. Slowly, the hospital room focused again. I sat up, held up my hands, and examined them. They were pale and covered in cuts and bruises, and my right hand was completely wrapped up in heavy bandages. My whole body felt weary and numb. I could've fallen asleep, what with the warmth of the blankets I was curled up in. But there was one small thing keeping me from dozing off…one _big_ thing, actually.

 _What's going on?_ I frantically asked myself, but, unable to come up with any plausible solution, my brain merely buzzed with confusion. _Last I checked, I was upset about my roommates, and I…broke a mirror, right? And then, I passed out?_

I was snapped out of my puzzling thoughts when I heard a loud voice from outside the door. Thankfully, Len had left it slightly ajar in his haste to get help, but the girl was speaking so shrilly that I could probably hear it with the door closed, too.

"WHAT? DO YOU MEAN TO SAY THAT YOUR GIRLFRIEND HAS AMNESIA NOW-"

"It's not amnesia, I've told you hundreds of times already, it's-"

"OH MY GOSH, SHE THINKS YOU'RE EVIL, SHE PROBABLY HATES US ALL NOW, I BET IT'S BECAUSE OF ALL THE STRESS FROM ALL THOSE GENUIS LEVEL CLASSES SHE'S TAKING-"

"Miku-"

"IT'S ALL MY FAULT! I TOLD HER THAT STUPID HORROR STORY LAST WEEK, AND THEN SHE WENT AND PUNCHED A MIRROR AND PASSED OUT AND OH MY GOSH-"

" _Miku-"_

"THE WORLD IS ENDING-"

"Please keep your voice down in the hospital, Miss Hatsune, or we'll have to throw you out!" A woman's voice could be heard hissing. Somewhere farther down the hallway than where I guessed the nurse was at, a door slammed.

"Busted."

"Shut up."

The two voices, clearly Miku's and Len's, sent chills traveling down my spine. My nose ached from a recent, painful memory of being beaten up by Miku and her group of girls who accosted me in the locker rooms one day for "chasing after" the handsome, _having-no-time-for-someone-like-you_ unavailable, Len Kagamine.

The door was flung open. Len grumpily slouched into the room, followed by a girl with long, teal pigtails, who fixed a piercing gaze at me with her wide, brilliant blue eyes.

"RIN-"

Thankfully, Len threw out an arm in front of Miku, restraining the girl from flinging herself onto me. Backing up, Miku blew her bangs out of her face and settled for flopping down on the chair besides my bed. Len rolled his eyes and stood behind her, resting his elbows on the back of the seat.

"Rin, are you alright? Len says you think he's evil. Well, maybe he is, but-"

"Dude, seriously."

" _Dudette_ for girls. Dr. Hiyama said that you might have developed PPD or schizophrenia from your injuries because you passed out and all, but was it because of the mirror? It only hurt your hands, though. He thinks it's from after you passed out on the floor and hit yourself on the head. Oh my gosh, we were _so_ worried! What if you don't want to be my best friend anymore? Of course, that would never happen, since I'm the most awesome-"

"Miku, you're ranting again." Len, who'd been silent for Miku's whole ranting session, finally interrupted her.

My eyes almost bulged out of my head. The two teenagers' personalities were almost the complete opposites of how I remembered them. Len was supposed to be a cruel, arrogant player (or, according to Miku and her friends, "handsome and _having-no-time-for-someone-like-you_ unavailable") and Miku, a popular girl who would thoughtlessly backstab her own so-called friends to maintain her status as prettiest, richest, or taken. Instead…

"Rin, what's wrong? Please stop staring. You look like a potato." Miku said.

"Aren't we all?" Len said.

What if Dr. Hiyama's theory, according to Miku, was right? Maybe my memories of my whole life up to now were just illusions. Was I insane?

I took a deep breath and decided to just assume that I was insane. "Um…"

Len stared at me stonily. He was probably very angry at me. If he was like the Len I remembered, I would already have passed out again from a knife wound or something.

"Um…sorry, Len, for before. I was just, I don't know..." I said awkwardly. Truth be told, it had been a long time since I actually had a genuine conversation with anyone, since rarely anyone would stop and talk to me.

"I don't really remember what happened to me so, um…" My voice trailed off.

"Oh," Len said. He gave me a tight-lipped smile, voice cracking slightly as he spoke. Miku, surprisingly, was completely silent and still, watching our conversation with wide eyes. "Well…no need to apologize. I was just… really shocked, you know. We thought that you would have amnesia or something (at this, Miku nodded vigorously) and, and…we're just glad you're all right." He averted his gaze from me and stared at the ceiling. "Does your hand still hurt?"

I opened my mouth to reply, but at that moment, another person stepped into the room.

"Good morning, Rin. How are you feeling right now?" Dr. Hiyama wore glasses and donned a pristine white doctor's coat. Holding a clipboard in hand, he shooed Len and Miku out of the room ("But we were having a touching moment together," Miku whined) and took my bandaged hand in his warm, soft ones, unwrapping it carefully.

The room was absolutely quiet - except for the steady beeping of the heart monitor – before I realized that I still had to answer his question.

I hesitated, and then decided to tell him the truth. "I…I'm scared. You think I have schizophrenia, right? My memories…they're all different. I feel like I've been plucked from my world and landed in this reversed one, where everything's the opposite. I really can't explain, I just…" Once again, my voice trailed off.

Hiyama nodded. I gazed into his eyes, trying to discern his expression. His brows were furrowed (he was scribbling furiously into his notes) and he seemed to be puzzled, although I guessed he probably had a better idea of the situation than me.

"Listen…you'll have to stay here for about a week, to heal up those injuries. If you don't remember, by the way, this is the Sakura Hospital, about three miles from your boarding school, Vocaloid Academy. I'll have to take your results to a neurologist, and we might even have to take you to a lab to figure out what's up. In the meantime, you can just ask one of your friends from school to fill you up on missing schoolwork. Alright?"

I nodded numbly. I was still utterly bewildered from the twist of events and the apparent reversal of my life, so I decided to just let everything naturally take place. Dr. Hiyama seemed to be a trustworthy, intelligent adult, and unlike Len and Miku, I couldn't remember ever meeting him before.

After a few more minutes of checking my wounds, the doctor swept out of the room with a swish of his white coat. I was left to brood in my room, delving on my excruciating memories.

* * *

" _Ouch!" Heavy textbooks tumbled out of my arms as I tripped over a rope that was tied across the doorway to my shared dorm. On the floor besides me was a large, hand painted poster: GO TO HELL._

 _Lifting my head up, I saw my two of my three roommates snickering at me._

" _Just friendly advice, you know," Gumi said. "You could take it anytime, we'll encourage you. There's the window." She pointed behind her._

 _The window was open, and tied to it, was what looked like another rope. It was longer, though. Neru, holding her precious cell phone in one hand, flung up the rope with her other one. My eyes widened; there was a noose at the end of the rope._

" _And don't come back!" Gumi's voice called after me as I quickly picked up my textbooks down and stormed away._

 _In the hallways, I was treated by everyone like I always was: hateful glances, deliberate shoving, whispers, name-calling, and tripping. A LOT of tripping. Eventually, I got tired of picking up fallen textbooks and left them in a neat pile at a desk in a corner of the nearly empty library. I was positive that I would never see them again. But after thinking it thoroughly, I used a pen to scribble out my name on the inside of their covers, so nobody would know whom the books belonged to._

 _Heading out of the library, I bumped into IA. The white-haired girl recoiled in disgust. "Didn't you see the sign in our room? Why are you still here?"_

 _I simply ignored her ("Think about it, won't you? Do us all a favor," she called after my retreating back) and decided to go to the school rooftop. Not to commit suicide, of course – no matter what happened, I always tried my best to not let those idiots emotionally hurt me - but to think. I wanted to think AND construct a plan to kill all my oppressors, or-_

" _Hey." Feet away from the exit, I was detained by a viselike grip on my shoulder. Hearing whom the cold, smooth voice belonged to, my breath caught; I actually started to consider jumping off the rooftop, now. "I haven't seen you in a while."_

 _Refusing to turn around and look at him, I snapped, "Let go of me, please. Where I am is none of your business."_

 _The grip tightened, making my whole arm go numb. I could feel him leaning closer, his breath tickling my ear. "Sweetie, if you think for a second that you can escape, you're wrong."_

 _Gritting my teeth, I violently twisted his wrist and heard a satisfying crack. "I'll say this one more time, Len. Leave. Me. Alone."_

" _Or what?"_

 _Finally, I turned around to look at Len. Eyes bright with malice, he smirked and kissed me forcefully on the lips. I struggled, but he held me even tighter, suffocating me against himself._

 _Finally, after what seemed like ages, Len finally let go of me. "Don't forget your place here, freak," he said. He nonchalantly showed me something in his hand: a pocket knife, caked in my own dried, dark red blood. "You're useless and you're under everyone else's mercy."_

 _He walked away, leaving me to stare at his retreating back._

* * *

"Oh my gosh, they actually serve leeks here!" Miku exclaimed between bites of her lunch. She and Len had come back to my room a few minutes after Dr. Hiyama had left and stayed with me until now.

Len, sitting on a chair he dragged in from another room, looked at Miku's food with distaste.

"Don't make that face," Miku said. "You look like a potato."

"Who're you calling a potato?"

Picking at my own hospital food (my tray was propped on my knees; I was sitting up in bed), I watched the two argue. In my previous life, (I had decided to make up a story about how I died heroically and was reincarnated into a different, better life) they had always teamed up to torment me, and I sensed some sort of crude, twisted romance between them. Now, however, their relationship was purely sibling-like.

"I don't have any leeks," Len said.

"Leeks wasn't on the menu. They put it in just for me because I'm special!"

"Especially annoying, yeah…Rin? Do you feel alright?"

I jumped so hard that my food tray slid dangerously to the left. Righting it, I faked a smile. "Yeah, I'm fine." I was still wary of them, since there was still a possibility that everything was just a cruel joke. But for the time being, they were acting friendly, so I decided to just enjoy it while it lasted. I kind of liked the heroic death and reincarnation story, too.

"Guess what? Luka and Gumi are coming to see you, too! They were supposed to be here one minute and thirty-seven minutes ago (Len face palmed) but they should be here any second now!"

If this was a joke, how long were they going to play it for? And how many people would they involve in it?

"Oh, they're coming too?" I heard myself say.

"With hugs and kisses," Len said, rolling his eyes. Compared to Miku's hyper, bubbly attitude, it seemed that his personality – in this "life" – was extremely sarcastic. Or maybe he was just in a severely bad mood.

A polite, tentative knock on the door caused all of us to jump. Miku clapped her hands cheerfully. "Ah, speak of the devil!"

Despite my inner sense of logic, I sincerely hoped that there was no joke, that this "life" was actually real. I wouldn't mind if this was a dream, either, as long as it never ended. Or could it be that I died and this was heaven? Either way, for the first time in a long while, I was happy.

 _REVERSE, once again…_

* * *

 **REVERSE! REVERSE! REVERSE OR YOU'LL FAIL YOUR DRIVING TEST!**

 **'K, that's it, byyyyyye.**

 **Please review, everyone, and stay tuned for Chapter 3! Thank you!**


	3. Adjusting

**OMG, IF ONLY I DIDN'T FORGET TO FRIGGIN SAVE! I ALREADY HAD 1,900 WORDS DOWN, AND THEY WERE AMONG THE BEST I HAD EVER WRITTEN! SO HAD TO REWRITE THE WHOLE THING CRAPILY AND**

 **DISCLAIMER: I don't own Vocaloid. Nor do I own Fairy Tail, One Piece, SnK, Death note, or Harry Potter (which I made two subtle references to, see if you can find thenm ;D) Also, that cut-out lyric thingy is from Magic Mirror by Rin.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3: _Adjusting_**

 **Obviously Rin's POV. You know what, from now on, I'll just skip this 'cuz I'm too lazy and**

"…obnoxiously childish and much too boisterous, Miku," Luka scolded. She and Gumi had already finished lunch before visiting, which, according to Miku, was the reason why they were late. "Do you know how many people have been complaining about you and your loud voice?"

"Ninety-seven, ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred," Miku peered out the large window across the room, apparently counting birds in an enormous flock that was flying by.

I snorted into my last spoonful of mashed potatoes. Luka sighed and crossed her arms. Like the first-world-Luka, she was extremely pretty and fashionably dressed, what with the designer jeans and purse she had. It was evident that she had spent hours on her flawless makeup and shiny pink hair. However, this Luka was much more motherly and caring, although I could tell that Gumi and Miku thought her attitude was slightly annoying at times.

"Miku," Luka said. "Did you hear me?"

"…One hundred seventy-two, one hundred seventy-three…"

Slouching in the chair that Len had previously occupied, Gumi snickered and made a rather horrible imitation of Luka's voice. "Don't shout anymore, Miku, or I'll have to ground you. Rin, eat your vegetables. Goodness, what horrible children! Mommy's very mad at you!" With a head full of choppy green hair, Gumi was donned in a tomboyish shirt and pair of shorts. She was quite sarcastic, like Len (who had rushed off soon after the two girls had arrived, after remembering a "stupid afterschool thing Mom's obsessed with" he was supposed to attend) and a mixture of carefree and tough.

Setting the now-empty lunch tray onto my nightstand, I said, "I'm a good child, Mommy."

"Miku, you're grounded!" Gumi continued to try and fail to imitate Luka, who was struggling to keep a straight face.

"Three hundred twenty-five, three hundred twenty-six…"

Luka flicked her hair over her shoulder and said, "Gumi, you're grounded too."

"What?!" Gumi clutched her chest in mock surprise. "Who is this imposter? Are you trying to steal my kids?"

"…three hundred ninety-four…"

I hunched forward, a small smile spreading across my face. My cheeks hurt a little, as if they had forgotten how to truly smile.

Luka leaned forward, her playful expression fading. "Anyway, Rin, we're really glad you're alright. We thought-"

"Five hundred seventy-five!" Miku announced loudly, earning a disapproving glare from the pink-haired girl.

Gumi squinted out the window along with Miku. "Isn't that a plane?"

"Oh no, I miscounted! One, two, three, four…"

"You only counted one extra," Luka said hurriedly. "So it's five hundred seventy-four." She turned back to me.

"Rin?"

"Yeah?"

"Len told us that, when you first woke up, you seemed to have false memories of him…" Abruptly, the atmosphere in the room became serious.

I opened my mouth, but no sound came out. False memories? Was all my pain from before…fake?

" _Just admit, ugly, you can't run from us."_ I clenched my fists into tight little balls, trying not to tremble.

" _You're useless and you're under everyone's mercy."_ Luka, Gumi, and Miku looked at me, waiting for an answer, but I had none to give. By now, I sincerely hoped that this new world wasn't a joke.

Gumi cleared her throat hesitantly. Our eyes instantly pointed to her. "Um… is Len still your b-mph"

Luka cupped Gumi's face in her manicured hands, mercilessly squishing the squirming girl's cheeks. "Anyway, that's just what we were wondering. Sorry if we, like, upset you or something."

"But," Miku chimed in. "If there's anything wrong, you can tell us, you know."

"Mmph, mmph!" Gumi added.

"You can consult the squishy oracle for advice!" Luka chuckled in a wildly transparent act to subside the awkwardness of the conversation.

I didn't what to say. Although I had already come to realize that this world was an opposite one from my first one, I was still adjusting. It would be a long time before I could forget my pain, let alone confide in anyone. Especially since all of my tormenters from the first world used to be my friends.

"Um…anyway, do any of you have homework?" I made an equally desperate attempt to change the subject.

"Shoot, I forgot," Miku and Gumi said together, Gumi having managed to escape having her cheeks being squished. She was rubbing her squished face, throwing Luka a dirty look.

"Here it is," the Luka the face squisher said automatically. She pulled out a huge pile of papers from her purse and dumped it onto my nightstand, besides the empty lunch tray. After thanking her, I leaned towards the nightstand as much as I could without falling out of bed and examined the homework; it was exactly like the ones I got in the first world. Of course, I had always paid attention and worked hard to keep my grades up, but they were still average, thanks to the bullying I also had to endure.

"…I can't believe you two would forget when Rin needed it so much." Luka was saying.

"I don't think we need to do anything," Miku said, "as long as _you're_ around."

At that moment, rapid footsteps sounded outside the door and Len rushed in, messy blonde hair falling out of his small ponytail. Before Luka could open her mouth to reprimand him for being so loud and "obnoxiously childish and much too boisterous," he dumped another pile of papers on my table. "I just snuck into Mr. Al's classroom," he panted. "We have a pop quiz in math tomorrow!"

Miku, Gumi, and Luka groaned.

* * *

 _I'm a frail girl having an empty dream of happiness in this world of absolute solitude…Please never let go of my hand…_

* * *

"Just two percent less!" Miku hissed through clenched teeth. After some "convincing," the nurses had allowed her to stay the night with me in the hospital, but kicked everyone else out. ("What do you mean, you'll let _her_ stay? She's the same person you complained about for being too loud!" Luka had protested.)

I looked at the mirror in front of me and saw that she was tying my short blonde hair into a ponytail, using a thick white ribbon. "Wosh er rade wry nosh?"

Miku burst into laughter, so loudly, in fact, that I could almost see Luka's disapproving expression. Rolling my eyes, I spit out my toothpaste and repeated my question. "What's her grade right now?"

"Ninety-nine. She's really smart. But she's so shy, though! Oh, speaking of IA, I think your roommates are planning a welcome party for you when you get back. Neru's been texting everyone about it lately! Shoot, I should've asked Gumi about it when she was here. Silly me!"

She had finished tying up my hair. Running my hands over my ponytail, I gazed at my reflection in the mirror: a pale, scrawny girl who was rather serious looking, but quite a bit happier than before. Inwardly, though, I winced at memories of a young first-world-Miku and I, before she had turned completely against me.

"Oh my gosh, you look so cute!" Miku squealed. "I mean, it's just a simple ponytail, but it's so pretty! Hold on, I'm going to try a French braid now." I turned around and smiled at my best friend gratefully…

"Thanks-" My voice trailed off midsentence.

I was staring at the spot where she was standing just a moment ago.

" _You're really cute. Thinking you can escape us like that. At least try to fight back. We're bored and we need to have some fun."_

"Miku?" I said. Suddenly, the bathroom was pitch dark, but for an eerie glow coming from the mirror behind me. The feeling rising in my chest was almost made me feel like I was being cornered by _them_ again. "M-miku!"

' _And then, everything was reversed…'_

"No!" My eyes widened in panic. The reflection frowned back at me, suddenly grim and formidable again. "Miku!"

I was back in my ripped, filthy school uniform, gasping in pain. As I watched, bruises and cuts blossomed across my arms and legs like poisonous flowers. The empty school courtyard I was standing in was blanketed in thick gray fog, as if the sky itself were trying to suffocate me.

"Miku!" My voice echoed across the cement. Startled at the sound, a large crow took flight, squawking reproachfully.

When something, or someone, stuck me from behind, I was knocked to the ground. There must have been a new bruise forming between my shoulder blades. Hastily picking myself up, I spun around to face the person who attacked me.

"Who do you think you are, just saying my name like that? As if we were friends?" A pair of icy teal eyes stared haughtily back at me.

" _What if you don't want to be my best friend anymore?"_ Her voice, from the second world, still lingered in my head. Although the two Mikus were essentially the same person, the auras they gave off contrasted so strongly that I felt nauseous.

"Hey! Didn't you hear me?"

Flinching, I backed up quickly, but was struck from behind once again by another monster. I clapped my hands over mouth to remain silent. Months ago, I had promised myself to never scream or cry in front of my tormentors. It was the least I could do as an act of defiance.

"Why don't you stay for a while?" Len said. His voice, once again, was cold and cruel. "We just want to play with you for a bit."

Before I could slip away, the smirking boy grabbed me by my ponytail and smashed my head into a wall. Blocking me by putting both arms on either side of the body, he leaned in so close that our noses were almost touching, and whispered, "You know what worthless trash like you deserve, whore? You deserve to be _killed_."

I slammed myself into him so hard, so suddenly, that Len was startled into loosening his grip on me, allowing me to tumble to the hard ground in a heap.

"You-" He shot me a hateful glance and addressed me with a string of profanities. I squinted at his slightly blurry outline, tentatively cupping a hand to my throbbing temple, which was swollen from the impact on the wall.

Miku calmly walked over, her shadow covering my trembling form. "That's a nice bow," she murmured, eyes narrowing. I took a sharp intake of breath as my ponytail was yanked again. "But I think…" I winced as I saw the flash of a knife and saw my own chopped off, blonde strands of hair fall to the ground. "A red one would look nicer."

On top of the throbbing, my veins pulsed in anger. That bow was a gift from second-world-Miku, a piece of evidence that there was a better life for me, that I had friends. I opened my mouth to protest, but bit down on my lips so hard that I tasted blood when the same knife plunged into my left hand. No, I couldn't scream. I wouldn't; I had promised myself! Even if everyone in this world had betrayed me, I still had to be loyal to myself! I would rather die than utter a sound that would satisfy them!

"Hurry…" Len's voice floated to my numb ears shakily, as if I were underwater. "Not much time…world…" Where was my hand? Was it cut off? Was I going to die? I didn't want to die, just when I was settling down in the second world. Did I really have to die?

More blood dripped down my face. My whole body felt on fire as I collapsed onto the hard cement. Was I dying?

As I heard Miku and Len's footsteps fade away into the fog, I stared unseeingly into the gray sky. I didn't scream, did I? No, I didn't. That was the only thing, in both worlds, that I was still certain of.

* * *

Eyes snapping open, I tumbled out of my bed and hit the carpeted floor with a muffled thud. IA, who was curled up, fully dressed in her uniform, in a chair in a corner of the bedroom, looked up from her book. "Good morning, Rin." And then she buried her nose in it again.

In the bunk opposite the one IA and I shared, Gumi, who also had the lower bed, gave a loud snore.

"Morning!" Neru cheerfully stepped out from our bathroom, brushing her glossy blonde hair. Like Luka, she could've passed for a fashion magazine model. Her family was one of the wealthiest in the school, but boy-crazy, phone addicted Neru insisted on attending Vocaloid Academy instead of the prestigious Utauloid Young Womens' Academy. She was slightly spoiled, though, but very much loved and admired by everyone, including me.

Yawning, I straightened my covers, changed into my school clothes, and placed Miku's fluffly white bow in my hair.

"Gumi, you lazy butt, get up! You've officially been the last to wake in this dorm for two weeks! UP!"

"Go away…"

"GET UP!" Neru started tickling her best friend.

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Done with my morning routine, I went over to IA and looked at her book over her shoulder. "Ooh, is that the Story of Evil series?"

After a moment, IA, having read the final word on the final page, shut the book and sighed dreamily. "It's the Synchronicity series. I can't wait for the next volume!" She straightened her glasses and smiled brightly. IA had long, silvery blonde hair that constantly fell over her face, a petite frame that was constantly hunched over, unsurprisingly, books. Her sky blue eyes were soft and often glazed from daydreaming, but she could be down to the earth when necessary; she had quite the reputation for her good grades.

One would feel rather protective of IA after being with her for a while, what with her sweet, shy, little-sister like attitude. Even though I only truly knew her for two weeks, I felt a strong sense of responsibility for her; if IA was ever hurt, I would be devastated.

"WHAT KIND OF FREAK WAKES SOMEONE UP LIKE THAT?" Gumi chucked her pillow at Neru's face with all her might.

"HOW DARE YOU! YOU COULD'VE RUINED MY MAKEUP!" This time, it was Gumi's turn to be struck by a pillow.

IA and I exchanged amused looks at the fight the inseparable friends were having.

"NO! STAY AWAY FROM MY COMPUTER! HEY! YOU PUT THAT MANGA BACK RIGHT NOW!"

"FAIRY TAIL! ONE PIECE! SHINGEKI NO KYOJIN! WHICH SHALL I BURN FIRST?"

"LOOK AT THIS PHOTO I HAVE OF YOU WITHOUT YOUR STUPID MAKEUP! PUT MY MANGAS BACK RIGHT NOW OR I'M SENDING IT TO REI!"

"I'M OVER HIM, STUPID!"

"DELL!"

"NO! I HATE YOU!"

"I'M SENDING IT RIGHT NOW!"

"SEND IT AND I'LL BURN EVERYTHING!"

Grabbing my schoolbag from besides my bed, I nodded to IA. "Do you want to get breakfast together?"

IA ducked to narrowly avoid a flying manga ("NO, NOT DEATH NOTE!" Gumi screamed) and followed me out the door, almost staggering under the weight of her bag full of novels.

"YOU AND YOUR ANNOYING OTAKU STUFF-"

"LOOK AT THE TEXT DELL SENT-"

"OH MY GOSH-"

IA stretched as I took half of the books out of her bag (which was seven) and carried it for her. "Thanks," she said. "I took these because Neru said she would burn everything."

"Those idiots," I chuckled. "Come on, let's go."

* * *

 **School's starting on Monday. :( Farewell, my dear writing career.**

 **Oh! I should probably do a shout out to my reviewers, right? (I'll do it for everyone so far, since I forgot last time.) Thank you for reviewing: Marimosaber, Neame kke, Guest, Nerumi H, and The Police of Fanfiction 2016! *happily blows streamers and trips***

 **Please review, everyone, and stay tuned for Chapter 4! Thank you!**

 **~Rikasa**


	4. First World

**I'M BAAAAAACK! HELLO EVERYONE! SORRY FOR DYING ON YOU! BUT I'M BAAAAAACK! *birds chirp* Aaaand...it's 1:30 in the morning right...**

 **Yeah...school, homework, violin, life, writing blocks...PINTEREST...I know, I suck. Sorry. But yeah, I'm back. Sorry if it's bad though...XD**

 **DISCLAIMER: I don't own Vocaloid or any of the characters. Only the plot is mine.**

* * *

 _Chaos, panic, and terror filled the bus now. Everything was blurred by the suffocating smoke that bloomed in the air. He immediately leapt up and leaned over me, shielding my body from the flying pieces of shrapnel. I protested, not wanting him to be hurt because of me. But he didn't listen, and continued to protect me…_

Len's eyes snapped open. Groaning, he slowly sat up and looked around. He was sitting on a vast, barren field that stretched so far in every direction his eyes could fathom that all he could see was a huge expanse of grayish brown. Above the boy's head stretched an infinite canopy of cold, gray sky. Where was this place?

He stood up, gasping when he was suddenly painfully reminded of the gaping wound in his stomach. Looking down, he winced, expecting to see a grotesque sight of mangled flesh and blood. However, nothing was there. In fact, Len felt completely fine, except for a hollow feeling in his chest.

Yes…he remembered now. The school bus crashing…his friends dying…rushing to protect the girl he loved…

"RIN!" Len cried.

" _Rin, rin, rin…"_ Echoes of his voice repeated eerily. Glumly, Len sat down again. He had a vague idea of where she was...no. He was absolutely positive of her location. Of her safety, however, he wasn't so sure...

 _And then, everything was reversed…_

 **Chapter 4: First World**

"YOU DARE TO TOUCH MY ANIME MERCHANDISE-"

"Can I have that?"

"YOU DARE TO TELL MY CRUSH ABOUT MY SECRETS-"

"Can I have that?"

"NO ONE LAYS THEIR FILTHY HANDS ON TOKYO GHOUL! EVER-"

"Can I have that?"

"WHAT IF REI THINKS I'M STUPID NOW?!"

"YOU ARE STUPID, NERU! EVERYONE KNOWS THAT ALREADY!"

"Can I have that? Please?

"THANKS TO YOU, MY HEART WILL BREAK-"

"Pleeeeeeaaaaaaase?"

"WHAT HEART? YOU CREASED PAGE 42!"

"PLEASE can I have that?"

"I'LL BE FOREVER ALONE NOW! I HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY, GUMI!"

"PRETTY PLEASE WITH CHERRIES ON TOP CAN I HAVE THAT-"

"THAT'S WHAT YOU GET FOR TOUCHING MY MANGA, LOSER!"

"CHERRIES AND RAINBOW SPARKLES! CAN I HAVE THAT, IA?"

Leaning over me to reach the teal-haired girl, Luka flicked Miku on the back of the head. "You can't just randomly ask people for food."

Miku pouted. "But she's not eating anything!"

Being the ever-hungry caterpillar that she was, Miku had already gobbled down her breakfast. She sat on my right; Luka on my left. Across from us, Gumi and Neru were now attempting to poison each other with maple syrup. In the background, the babble of cheerful students seeped into the floor of the cafeteria hall and warmed my whole body. The only contrast to this pleasant atmosphere was Ia, who was staring blankly into space, delicious food left untouched.

"Earth to Ia…Earth to Ia…" Miku leaned across the table and vigorously waved her hand in front of the girl's face. I had to flip one of Miku's long pigtails over her shoulder to prevent it from falling into my half-full cereal bowl. (Yes, I was an optimist who always said half-full rather than half-empty).

"Ia!" Miku said, in a voice slightly louder than her already loud voice.

With a start, Ia looked up. "W-What? Sorry, I was…I just dozed off, I think."

Luka, who had just raised a glass of orange juice to her lips, set the glass down again. Leaning forward, she scrutinized the pale girl closely. "Are you alright? You don't feel sick, do you?"

As if the movement cost her a great amount of effort, Ia shook her head slowly. "I'm just…tired. I think I'll go back to the dorms for a while."

"Are you sure? Class is starting soon," I said.

Ia tilted her head and pursed her lips, expression full of dilemma. A cold wave of worry washed all of the warmth from my bones; her face was steadily growing paler by the second. "I think I'll…sit out first period. I'm…I just feel really tired."

As the petite girl rose up and trudged slowly back to our rooms, we stared at each other in shock. Even Neru and Gumi ceased their boisterous bantering and stared after Ia's retreating form.

"She must be really sick, to miss class..." Luka said, brow furrowed.

"She was fine just this morning, though," said Neru, viscously stabbing her pancakes with a fork.

"Unless…" Gumi exchanged a dark look with the other two. Luka, eyes widening, shook her head frantically; for a microsecond, I saw her glance in my direction.

"What do you think is wrong with her?" I asked the group at large. Everyone jumped, as if they had been excluding me in their conversation – which they had. Thanks a lot.

"She's just tired, Rin." Luka said, flashing a reassuring smile that wasn't the slightest bit convincing. "Let's just finish eating and head to class."

* * *

There was no sign of Ia for the entire first half of the day. At lunch, Miku and I, exhausted from having our brains crammed with so much tedious schoolwork while worrying about our friend, set off to the dorms to check on her. Miku was skipping and humming at the same time, which, of course, distorted her singing quiet a lot.

"Ia?" I called, opening the bedroom door. All four bunks were tidy and, very disappointingly, empty. There was no sign that anybody had been in the room since morning.

"Do you think she got better, then?" I asked Miku, who had suddenly fallen silent.

"Maybe we should go back to the cafeteria to look for her." I continued.

"Rin."

"Or maybe she's in one of the classrooms, right now?"

"Rin!" My head snapped around to look at my friend so fast that my neck cricked. Miku's face was as pale as Ia's had been at breakfast, but she looked even more terrible; her lips, which had turned ghostly blue, were trembling.

"Miku?"

"We should stop looking for her." The teal-haired girl whispered, so softly that I almost didn't hear her.

Thinking that I did, in fact, mishear her, I leaned forward and said, "What?"

"We should stop looking for her," Miku repeated. Without another word, she turned around and started to head back down to lunch, head hung low.

"Miku!" I called, rushing to catch up with her. "What's wrong with Ia?"

"I don't know."

"But-"

"RIN!" Miku yelled, halting abruptly in the middle of the corridor. The emptiness of the hall caused her voice to echo loudly, despite the muffling flowery carpet that looked so ridiculously cheerful in contrast to our predicament. Harshly reminded of the First World Miku, I flinched and shrank back from my friend.

"I…sorry, I shouldn't have…" My voice trailed off. With a sinking sensation in my stomach, I wondered if the Second World was going to become like the first. Were my new friends going to abandon me? Were they going to torment me? If this came true, where would I run and hide? Could I possibly escape into a new dream, or was it the end for me?

My dark train of thought crashed when Miku burst into tears. Alarmed, I looked up at her, eyes widened in shock. Tears rolled down my characteristically cheerful friend's face and splashed down her front, dampening her school uniform. Her whole body trembled like the way a leaf does as it's blown away by cold winter drafts.

Even as I went to embrace Miku in hopes of comforting her, my vision darkened. Miku's tearstained face swam in front of my eyes, going in and out of focus.

"I-I'm so s-sorry…I m-miss her al-already…" she whispered.

"Don't be silly," I said, having no idea if the solace I gave her was true or not. "Ia's fine. She's probably just in the cafeteria or something-"

"Look who's here again…" a cruel voice resonated in my head, sending shivers down my spine. I knew that I was going back to the First World again.

"I-I wish I could tell you," Miku continued, shaking in my arms. "If o-only y-you knew…"

"Come back for more fun with us?" The nameless voice, now distinct in my ears, had become complemented by other malicious jeers and howls of laughter.

And with that, Miku was gone, and I was alone.

"Wait!" I cried, heart caught in my throat. But my friend's face had completely disappeared. Once again, I was stranded in the First World, subject to more torture from its inhabitants.

A cold, rough wall pressed against my back. Eyes adjusting to the semi-darkness, I realized that a girl with long, flowing silver hair stood in front of me, grinning sadistically. It was Ia.

"L-Leave me alone." I blurted out, and then immediately regretted my rash action when the girl stepped forward threateningly, pulling out a bloodstained dagger. Her casual, yet intimidating stance almost made me believe that she could smell fear, like a wolf. Ia's head was tilted at an unnatural angle, and her eyes widened in delight as I shrank back from her.

"Look at what you've done to me, Rin." She whispered coldly, gesturing at herself with her knife-free hand. "You made me like this."

I shook my head wildly, hoping to wake up from this nightmare. The entire front of Ia's school uniform was stained in what looked suspiciously like blood. As she stepped closer and closer, Ia's neck bent more and more, until I realized that it was broken. Her hands, too, were crimson, and when she opened her mouth to leer at me, blood dribbled out of her mouth and down her chin.

I had nowhere to run.

Bracing myself for the worse, I closed my eyes. One moment, I felt the girl's breath on my face, her nails digging painfully into my arms. Next, a wave of penetrating iciness washed over me, and my knees collapsed. I fell.

I never touched the ground, though; for as soon as the cold vanished, it was replaced by a tingling sensation that calmed my overrun nerves, and a warm hand grabbed my arm and gently pulled me up. Tentatively, I opened my eyes, and found myself gazing into a pair of anxious blue orbs.

"Are you alright, Rin?" Len asked. In his grasp, I tensed slight; he must have sensed it, because he instantly released me and stepped back.

"W-where's Ia? Where's Miku?" I asked, straightening up and quickly taking in my surroundings again. Len and I were standing alone in an empty classroom. Almost subconsciously, my breath began to slow, and my heartrate steadied again.

Seating himself on top of a student desk, Len gazed at me piercingly. "Are you sure you're fine?"

"Yeah." I said, then added in a shyly, "thank you."

The corners of his lips twitched upward.

"So...where are they?" I reiterated.

Looking at my face carefully, as if afraid of my reaction to his next words, Len said, "Miku's looking for Ia."

"Why? What happened? What time is it?"

Len pursed his lips. "School's ended about an hour ago."

My mouth dropped open in horror. "So I missed the rest of my classes? Did I pass out again?" Now that I thought about it, I had no clue what my ventures into the First World looked like to my friends.

Pointing to the desk beside him, Len silently motioned at me to sit down, but in a way that was more friendly than imperious. When I did so - albeit hesitantly - he took a deep breath, as if preparing to give a long speech. "You left the Second World again."

My breath hitched. "You…you know?"

He raised his eyebrows. "About what?"

"About…About the First World."

A series of expressions flitted across the boy's face in a single moment – shock, confusion, and anger. "There is no First World."

"Of course there is. Why else is this place second, then?"

Len fixed me again with that piercing look. "There is no First World. It simply stopped existing, after everything in it disappeared."

I crossed my arms. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Thankfully, Len stopped staring at me, and instead took to observing his shirt's hem, which he was fiddling with. "This world is the only world that's left. If you try to look for any other place…well, let's just say that things wouldn't go well for you."

My cheeks flushed in annoyance. "It's not like I'm doing it on purpose!"

Len frowned, but decided to ignore me. "This is the one world we, and everyone else, live in. It's like a safe haven...it's possible to leave, of course, but, as you probably know, there's really no other place to go."

"No," I said. "You're wrong."Len's frown deepened, but I simply continued. "The First World still exists. It's a terrible, cruel place, but I've still gone there many times. Involuntarily, I might add."

He shook his head. "It just doesn't make sense."

"How so?"

"That you could go back and nobody else can."

"Go back? As in, you've been there before."

Len stopped fiddling with his shirt, and instead decided to gaze at the ceiling. "I came from the First World too, you know."

My eyes widened. The Len sitting beside me, whom I was talking so calmly to…it was impossible that he was the same person that had hurt me so cruelly in the First World. This boy was kind and friendly, that boy manically sadistic. I simply refused to believe that they could be the same person.

Evidently, the ceiling was boring, because Len now turned his attention onto the teacher's tidy desk at the front of the room. I stayed silent, waiting for him to continue speaking, but instead he sighed and narrowed his eyes at the desk as though willing it to come to life and do the speaking for him.

As I looked at the boy, he finally turned and gazed back at me, his deep eyes transfixing me. It was uncanny how they had the ability to make him seem more familiar, yet so mysterious to me.

"Rin?"

"Yeah?"

"Next time you go back to the First World," Len said, those eyes of his doing their strange magic on me again, "I'll come with you."

* * *

 **Yeah, I just thought it would be sweet of him to do that. Sorry if it's OOC or lame or cliché or whatever...it does remind me of Frank and Hazel from Percy Jackson, though...:3 BTW, don't worry, Ia (whose name I switched from IA to Ia because I got too lazy to hold the shift button for two letters) will appear again since she didn't die painfully enough. LOL *gets shot***

 **Anyway, yeah...no idea when I'll next update. Hopefully soon (Ha, I don't even believe myself) because I'm like, interested in writing fanfiction again? Hopefully?**

 **...Too tired to do the individual review shout outs, 'cuz it is 1:30 after all. So here goes...THANK YOU ALL WHO REVIEWED! (Though not many people reviewed anyway...ahem ahem)**

 **Please review, everyone, and stay tuned for Chapter 5! Thank you!**


	5. The First to Fall

**GUESS WHAT GUESS WHAT I'M ALIVE YASSSSS IT'S THANKSGIVING TURKAY OMG YASSSS NOMNOMNOM**

 **Thank you for reviewing: DontMindMe1234*happily blows streamers and trips***

 **Wow, it looks like that was the only review I got. T_T Really, childs? Can't you be more like DontMindMe1234? JK lol**

 **I'll do the disclaimer at the end cuz reasons**

* * *

… _this time was different. Because there was one thing that hadn't faded…yet._

 **Chapter 5: The First to Fall**

Gasping for air, I wiped the blood trickling from my mouth and forced myself to keep running, ignoring the burning sensation in my chest and my smarting arms and legs. When a flying stone made painful contact with the back of my throbbing head, I flung myself under the cool shadow of a rosebush.

 _One…_

 _Two…_

 _Three…_

A group of familiar footsteps, complimented by jeering laughter that sent chills down my aching spine, passed my hiding spot.

I heaved a minuscule sigh of relief, and bent my head down to examine the stinging cuts on my legs-

A rough hand grabbed me by the scruff of my neck and wheeled me around; I found myself gazing into a pair of cruel blue orbs.

"Found you." Len sneered, beautiful eyes alight with sadistic pleasure at my pain.

 _HELP-_

* * *

CRUNCH.

I jumped, knocking my knees into the edge of the wooden table I was sitting at.

"Stupid-" Meiko grunted, looking quite ridiculous yet somewhat fearsome, with her short brown hair standing up with electricity and a broken pen in hand. "-effing…KAITO!"

Sitting beside me, Luka sniggered. "I can't believe you actually fell for it, Mei."

"You were in on it?!"

"No, I'm just an impartial onlooker who is ever so much wiser-"

From three tables away, the elderly, plump librarian shot an irritated look at them.

"You little-"

"You and Kaito-"

"You and Gacky poo-"

"You little-"

Rising from my seat, I clamped a hand over each of the girl's mouths. "Shut up, you two! You want us to be kicked out?"

Fortunately, both of them shut up, though not before shooting each other venomous glares. The librarian, who had been marching in our direction holding an ominously long ruler like a sword, nodded in satisfaction and walked away.

Meiko, Luka's best friend, was an outspoken, hot-tempered girl with a sharp tongue, in total contrast to the typically soft spoken pink-haired girl (in the presence of anyone but Meiko and Gakupo). Meiko and Luka were similar to Gumi and Neru, and even fought like them, except for the fact that Meiko fought with nearly all of us. Kaito, in particular, was one of the brunette's most targeted victims, since he usually retaliated by pulling obnoxious pranks on her. Most of them were so stupid that they actually worked.

A tall, purple haired boy popped up behind me. "Did someone say Luka and me?"

Luka rolled her eyes. Gakupo Kamui was a sweet, if not slightly idiotic boy who had an odd obsession for eggplants, samurai, and – of course – Luka Megurine. There never passed a single day where Gakupo would not avow his undying love for Luka and try to make her fall for him by using a variety of cliché pick up lines, cheesy love poems, and shameless blandishments. Luka, however, always turned a cold shoulder toward him, though everyone swore she secretly liked him back.

Gakupo fingered his ridiculously long ponytail – a look he actually managed to pull off - and smirked at Luka.

"Hey," he began, in a would-be husky voice. "Was your father a thief? Because-"

"He stole the stars and put them in my eyes, yadda yadda." Luka yawned.

"Are you a banana? Because you're-"

"Let me guess, a peeling?" The pink-haired girl's voice was cool, but the traitorous upward twitch emerging at the corners of her lips suggested otherwise.

Undeterred, Gakupo tried again. "Are you Google? Because you have everything I'm looking for."

Suddenly, Luka was attacked by a violent coughing fit that sounded suspiciously like laughter. While Meiko and I watched on in amusement, Gakupo attempted to pat her back, only to have his hand slapped away.

Gakupo pouted, summoning the best puppy dog face he could muster. "Luka, will you go out with me?"

Behind his back, Meiko and I nodded frantically.

Luka glared at us, and then turned the full brunt of her death stare to her purple-haired admirer. "Go Google it."

Finally exhausted, Gakupo left the library.

Meiko immediately turned on her friend. "Luka! Why? He's so sweet!"

"If you think HE'S sweet, then why can't you get together with Kaito?" Luka retorted, flicking her silky pink hair over her shoulder.

Meiko turned to me for help. "Rin, don't you think Luka should be with Gacky poo?"

I smirked. "Yes!"

"What about Meiko and Kaito?" Luka said.

"Yes!"

"How about you and Len?" The two girls asked simultaneously.

I blanched. "Y-n- wait, what?!"

* * *

"…So the field trip will be next month!"

"Yeah."

"To an epic carnival!"

"Uh-huh."

"And everyone in our class will get to be on one bus together and we'll get to drive by the mountainside!"

"Correct, Miku."

"And I hope we get to sit together, and – oh!" Miku's breathless rambling to Len and me came to an abrupt stop when she spotted something over my shoulder.

"What now?" said Len in a bored voice, but Miku had already dropped her schoolbag against a tree trunk and sprinted toward the blooming school garden.

"Len! Rin! Look!" she said, hopping up and down with glee, pigtails bouncing along with her incessant motion. Her teal hair clashed strikingly against the pastel petals of the garden's pink, yellow, and white blossoms. "The sakura are blooming!"

It was during lunch. Most students, like us, were enjoying this lovely spring day outdoors, and the unlucky few that had to remain indoors for the sake of schoolwork gazed at us enviously from the windows.

"Rin! Rin! Len! Len! Ren!"

"What!" we said simultaneously. Having dropped off our bags at the tree trunk as well, both of us were standing behind Miku, who was crouched down upon the ground, inhaling the sweet aroma of a delicate rosebush. Len and I were standing close to each other, but not so close that our arms touched; the distance between the two of us created an odd, fluttery sensation in my stomach. I could just barely feel the gentle warmth that always seemed to radiate off Len Kagamine.

Suddenly, Miku popped up, twirled around, and blew a handful of scattered rose petals in our faces.

"Miku!" I protested. The crimson petals would be hopelessly stuck in my short, flaxen hair for the rest of the day.

My best friend giggled innocently. "It looks so good on you two! You're so cute together!"

Len coughed. For a second, his mesmerizing azure eyes met mine, and then dropped my gaze once again. A light pink, even softer than the cherry blossoms, dusted his cheeks, and at the same time, I felt heat rush up my face.

"You're very energetic, today, aren't you?" I said to Miku

Twirling even more, Miku closed her eyes and took a deep breath, tilting her face upwards to the gentle noon sun. "I'm just…so happy. I'm so glad that I get to be with my friends right now." She opened her eyes, and I was shocked to see them shining with tears of joy. "Let's always remember today, alright?"

Len patted her on the head. "Since when did you become so emotional?"

I rolled my eyes. "She probably just got caught up with some anime or something."

"Oh, so Gumi finally rubbed off on her."

Miku pouted. "You guys are so mean! I was just going on about how much I love you guys!"

Len stuck out his tongue, only to be smacked on the head by Miku. I grinned at Len as he pouted and rubbed his head, but as my gaze turned to the school building, the grin faded. For a millisecond, I thought I saw…no, it couldn't be…

A flicker of silver hair…

…Ia?

"Wait! Where are you going?" Len called after me as I hurriedly picked up my school bag and dashed away.

"I have to do something!" I called back. "Don't follow me!" I added, just as my friends started to run after me. "I'll be right back!"

Ia…Where did she go? Ever since that morning when Ia disappeared, she never reappeared again. Did she run away? Did something happen? But all of a sudden, she was back…

I racked my brain for answers, but sadly, nothing came to me. One thing I did know, however, was that I saw the flash of silver hair in one of the windows of the library. Now that I thought about it, it did make sense, since Ia could usually be found curled up in one of the library's reading nooks, immersed in some epic fantasy or thriller.

My pounding footsteps finally halted as I reached the double oak doors. Looking around, I noted with relief that nobody else was around. Slowly, I pushed open the doors and stepped inside.

The first thing I noticed when I stepped in, was…nothing. There was nothing, nobody in the library. The tables that I had previously sat at with Luka and Meiko were empty, their surfaces cleared of all books and loose papers. The endless aisles were neat and tidy. It was odd, seeing as how there were supposed to be a few students indoors cramming for tests.

On second thought…there was the sound of faint, muffled sobbing resounding from one the aisles at the very back of the library, the one furthest to me.

"Hello?" I called. No response.

Sighing, I carefully made my way across the room, past various tables, and through numerous cluttered aisles; finally, I stood at the end of the aisle that the crying seemed to emanate from. At the back of the aisle was, indeed, a silver haired girl. She was curled up in a ball in an almost fetus like position, trembling.

Hesitating, I slowly made my way up to the fragile girl. "Ia?" I asked softly. "Are you…" My voice trailed off. No, of course she wasn't alright. What a stupid question. I opened my mouth again. "Ia, where have you been?"

Almost two minutes passed before the girl showed any response. When she looked up at me, her face was a fright. Her skin was deathly pale, eyes bloodshot and dull, lips ghastly blue…she looked like a ghost.

"R-Rin?" Her voice was hoarse and paper thin, as if she had not spoken for years.

I sucked in a breath, excited that she had finally acknowledged me. However, I still kept my calm, gentle voice when I spoke to her next. "Yes, it's me."

Ia's lifeless eyes drilled into mine, and I realized that there were no signs of crying at all; her face bore no tearstains whatsoever. "Rin…my neck hurts." She brushed her long, tangled hair out of her face and straightened up, so I could finally see what was wrong with her.

I bit back a vehement scream.

Her neck was tilted at an unnatural angle, seemingly broken. The entire front of Ia's school uniform was stained in what looked suspiciously like blood. Her hands were crimson as well.

It was exactly like the First World Ia…

" _Look at what you've done to me, Rin. You made me like this."_

I shook my head vigorously, attempting to block out the grotesque memory. "Come on, Ia." My voice shook so badly that I had no choice but to repeat myself to be understood. "Let's get you some help." I offered her my hands, wanting to pull her up and help her walk to the nurse's office.

The petite girl, however, merely shook her head, an action that caused her neck to bend even more at that same eerie angle.

"Ia, you need help." I said firmly.

She shook her head.

"Ia!" My voice cracked with a mixture of anxiety and frustration. Perhaps I should leave the girl here, and bring help to her. However, I was too worried to leave her alone for even two seconds. "I'm begging you! Let me help you! Please."

Again, Ia fixed me with those lifeless eyes of hers. "Read me a story."

"I…what?"

"Read me a story." Ia repeated, pointing to a book behind her. Reluctantly deciding to play along, I peered at the book and gently pulled it out. _Mirror's Magic._ It was a thin, dusty volume with crumbling, yellowing pages that were almost as delicate as Ia.

"You want me to…read this to you?"

Ia nodded. I pondered the situation. The right choice was to bring Ia for help, but I knew she wouldn't let me. It would be unwise to argue with, or forcibly move her, in this state. I may have left and brought help to her, but of course, that would be foolish as well. So my best choice was to do what Ia wanted: read a story to her; hopefully, she would be willing to receive medical help afterwards.

I sighed and opened the book. Ia's frail figure remained stock still; the only sign that she was listening to me was her ragged breathing.

 _Mirror's Magic_ was a poetry book, it seemed. I was fond of poetry, but I was unused to reading it out loud to someone. Nevertheless, I took a deep breath and recited:

 _I will grant everything you wish for_ _  
_ _Try calling out from the other side of the mirror_ _  
_ _Tonight, "magic will reverse everything"_ _  
_ _Because I am your very own magician_

 _Stained with hatred, my heart falls_ _  
_ _"Everything is reversed" on the other side of the mirror_ _  
_ _The scales of destiny have been replaced_ _  
_ _So forget everything and "rejoice"_

 _Stained with sadness, my heart wavers  
"Everything is reversed on the other side of the mirror  
The scales of destiny have been shattered  
Destroyed by my hands_

 _Reflected in the mirror, we are "reversed"  
Each time you cried, I laughed?  
If "my happiness" curses you  
What should I do to save you...?  
What should I do to save you...?_

 _"I see...I should...Grant everything you wish for"_ _  
_ _Try calling out from the other side of the mirror_ _  
_ _Tonight, "magic will reverse everything"_ _  
_ _Because I am your very own magician_

 _Have all of your wishes been granted?_ _  
_ _Then with this, the mirror's magic is over_ _  
_ _Touching your palm with a disappearing hand_ _  
_ _I laughed, saying "so this is farewell"_ _  
_ _I wonder if you're crying on the other side of the mirror?_ _  
_ _It would be nice if I could see you again someday_

As I uttered the last line, my eyes darted over to Ia's petite, unmoving figure. During the whole recitation, she had not stirred at all, and now, even her breathing had ceased. Panicking, I leaned over, ready to catch her if she collapsed.

However, Ia merely beamed at me. "Thank you," she said. In those two words, her former energy, her former emotions, her former dreaminess were abundant. For a moment, the life came back to her eyes in the form of a smile, lighting up her whole face.

And then, that moment ended, and Ia was gone.

She was gone.

 _She was gone._

" _Look at what you've done to me, Rin. You made me like this."_ Hateful memories echoed in my head once again. Now that my friend was gone, there was no chance of blocking them out.

" _Sweetie, if you think for a second that you can escape, you're wrong."_

 _Help me…_

" _You're useless and you're under everyone else's mercy…"_

… _Help me…_

"… _Don't forget your place here, freak…"_

… _Help me!_

"… _Found you."_

 _HELP-_

"Found you!"

I tensed and looked around, my breathing rough and jagged. I was still in the library. I was still in the Second World. I was still holding _Mirror's Magic_ in my trembling hands.

But Ia was gone. I touched my cheeks tentatively, and realized that I had been crying, kneeling on the floor. How pathetic…it seemed that the Second World had spoiled me. If it were the First, my crying session would have made me easy prey to…to…

A warm hand reached forward and brushed my tears away. Len pierced me with his eyes at me, his intense gaze filled with concern and tenderness. There was another emotion as well, but I didn't dare name it. After all…everyone in the First World went out of their way to tell me that I was a useless, hideous weakling that could never be loved.

Finally, I sniffed and shook my head, making Len draw his hand back. "Ia's…" My voice trailed off.

"She's gone, I know." As the boy said this, a drop of raw sorrow was added to the swirling mixture in his deep eyes. For a second, I almost thought I saw fear as well.

"It…It was my fault-"

"It wasn't." Len said firmly. "None of this is your fault. Remember that, Rin."

Even as I nodded, the jeering voices started to come back; my vision darkened along with them. This meant one thing: I was going back to the First World.

As the library faded, I closed my eyes and tightened my fists, ready to enter my own personal hell. Ready to endure the pain, endure everything inflicted on me by the First World's sadistic inhabitants.

But unlike my many previous trips to the First World, this time was different.

Because there was one thing that hadn't faded…yet.

"It'll be okay." Len squeezed my hand reassuringly. "I'm with you, Rin."

* * *

 **AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH WOW WHAT A LONG CHAPTER I'm okay :)**

 **Yes RinxLen fluff hahahahahahahahaha**

 **And yes, Miku is cheesily love-dovey for a reason. For the poetry lines, I took a few stanzas from _Mirror's Magic_ written by Hitoshizuku-P, sung by Len Kagamine (there are 13 in total, and I took 6). I got the English lyrics from animelyrics.**

 **DISCLAIMER: No tengo Vocaloid, any of the vocaloid characters, the song _Mirror's Magic_ , or the English translation lyrics. Only the plot is mine!**

 **The reason I did this was to foreshadow, just like with Miku's weird attitude. Furthermore, did anyone notice that the rosebush Rin hid behind at the beginning was the same one she, Len, and Miku were hanging around? (~^_^)~**

 **Yes, I changed the summary because the old one was lame. I hope this one is better...?**

 **Anyway...yeah. TURKEY. Please review, everyone, and stay tuned for Chapter 6! HAPPY THANKSGIVING! :D :D :D**

 **~Rikasa**


	6. Swan Song

**Wow. I cannot believe that I updated twice WITHIN ONE WEEK. But I probably won't update again for three weeks or so. *shivers* Finals...O_o**

 **Thank you for reviewing: Neame kke! *happily blows streamers and trips***

 **Hmm...I wonder if it's possible to have more than one review on a chapter...? *wink wink nudge nudge***

 **And yes, for confirmation on behalf of Neame kke (and probably some others too) Rin and Len were IN FACT _dating_. But after Rin woke up in the second world, she was all OMG UR EVIL so Len decided to be a gentleman and not mention it. So it's complicated, yeah...**

 _ **SWAN SONG:**_ ** **a person's last public performance or professional activity before death or retirement****

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Swan Song**

"It'll be okay. I'm with you, Rin."

I shut my eyes tightly, drowning out the shifting darkness around us. When Len's warm pressure on my hand dissolved, I tentatively cracked an eye open and observed my surroundings. My jaw dropped.

Len and I were standing besides an occupied bed in a grim hospital room. Other than the bed, there wasn't much in the room; the emptiness was amplified even more by the blank, cold white walls. The only other pieces of furniture were a doctor's rolling chair by the bed, a steadily beeping heartbeat monitor attached to the wrist of the bed's occupant, a nightstand with a half-full glass of water, a dish of pills, and what looked like a newspaper clipping.

The room's most interesting feature, of course, was the patient. The girl in the bed stared at the opposite wall with shattered eyes. Her gaunt face was mostly concealed by the thick bandages surrounding her head, wrapped tightly and neatly by a skilled hand. The bandages, in turn, were partly obscured by the girl's wiry, flaxen hair. Although it was neat and clean, the hair looked unhealthy; it was shockingly thin compared to the bandages.

Her pale, porcelain skin, covered in yet more bandages and – I assumed – numerous bruises and cuts, reminded me of IA's deathlike appearance when I read to her. Silent and unmoving, the injured girl was clad in a paper thin hospital gown. Her eyes, devoid of all life and emotion, never moved once. It was almost like she wasn't alive.

That girl…was me.

I gasped. Heart thudding in my chest, I swiveled around to look at Len, who had placed himself at the foot of the bed. I opened my mouth to speak, but he merely shook his head and held a finger to his lips, fixing his solemn blue eyes on me in a silent act of reassurance.

The door to the hospital room opened. A man – a doctor – walked in, showing no sign whatsoever that he was aware of our presence in the room. When he reached Len, I expected him to collide with the boy, or at least swerve away to avoid impact; but instead, the doctor walked straight through Len as if the boy were a ghost. Len gazed at me intently, and I realized that the message his eyes told me said that, in fact, _we_ were the ghosts, and because we didn't belong to this place – the First World – we couldn't do anything. We could only watch.

The doctor seated himself in a chair besides the girl's bed. He was a serious looking man with thinning salt and pepper hair, but he had kind eyes with smile wrinkles around them. Currently, those eyes were dark with worry, and his face bore subtle signs of stress and fatigue.

"How are you doing, Miss Kagami?"

I jumped at the sound of my name being spoken. So did the girl in the bed, who had apparently been oblivious to the doctor's presence prior to him speaking.

As if the motion cost her a great amount of effort, the girl turned her head to the doctor and opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Instead, she settled with staring at the man with those large, broken eyes of hers.

The doctor sighed, but mustered a would-be cheerful smile.

"It appears that you're showing great signs of recovery, physically. If we're lucky, you'll be able to walk again within a couple of months."

Again, he smiled desperately at the girl, urging her to register this good news, but she still gazed back blankly.

"How are you doing with your therapist, Miss Kagami?"

Silence.

"Are you taking your pills, Miss? Have they caused any of your…symptoms to stop yet?"

After a few more minutes of strained, medical-focused, one-sided conversation, the doctor finally stood up to leave. Just as he was about to step out the door, the girl finally spoke. Raspy and weak, her voice grated on my ears, sounding as if she had not used it for decades.

"What about the others?"

The doctor halted in his tracks and slowly turned around to look back at the girl, as if he didn't really want to face her. "Pardon me?"

The girl continued. "My friends…are they alright?"

The doctor hesitated, like all adults do when faced with the dilemma of revealing the ugly truth to a child. His face twitched very subtly; I saw that it showed signs of pity on it. "Miss…do you feel-"

"Where are they? Are they alright?"

"Miss Kagami, please don't upset yourself-"

"Dr. Hiyama!" The girl raised her voice, or at least tried to, with her croaky voice. Her chest heaved up and down, and I could tell that she was short of breath for speaking so much. "Please...tell me the truth. Where are my friends?"

Once again, Hiyama hesitated. When he finally seemed to realize that there was no escaping his patient's question, he said, "They're…they are in a better place now, Miss."

The girl's eyes widened, coming to life with the first emotion I had seen on her: grief. "W-what about Miku? And Luka? And IA?" She added desperately, as if she didn't know the answer.

For a millisecond, the doctor's professional façade slipped, and his eyes glinted with unshed tears. Then, regaining his cool composure and voice, he began: "Miss. You have recovered greatly, but you're not back to your full strength yet. It would be unwise to become overemotional over-"

"Please…" Tears streamed down the girl's cheeks, and her voice shook with uncontrollable sorrow. "P-please tell me that Len Kagamine is still alive!"

The heartbeat monitor beeped erratically.

The doctor bowed his head. Bile rising in my throat, I rushed to the nightstand and looked at the newspaper.

SCHOOL BUS FALLS DOWN CLIFF – ONLY ONE SURVIVOR

Before I could read anything else, I felt a warm pressure on my hand once again. I had been so immersed in the revelation unfolding before me that I had failed to notice Len come beside me.

I bit my lip. "So this is the First World?"

He nodded.

"But…" I frowned, jaw tightening with confusion. My voice was weak. "This isn't like how I remember…"

Len's mouth tightened. "C'mon," he said. "Let's go back."

"B-but I don't understand!" I cried. The doctor had left the room; the girl was sobbing on the bed. "If everyone in the First World is d-dead, how does the Second World exist? And does that mean the place _I_ came from is the Third World? And-"

Len held up his hand to stop me, and my eyes widened. His fingertips were slightly – ever so slightly – translucent. Wildly, I glanced at my own hands, they were fully solid and healthy looking; there was nothing _dead_ about me at all.

A shiver ran up my spine, which was an all-too-familiar feeling, thanks to the _Third_ World. I still couldn't get used to calling _that place_ by that name.

"Rin." Len said in a soothing, yet almost desperate tone. "Rin, look at me."

I shook my head, rubbing my temples frantically. The sobbing from the bedridden girl – First World Rin – did nothing to assuage my bewilderment.

"Stop." Len strode to me and grabbed my hands, cupping them in his own ice-cold ones. I tried not to look at their steadily increasing transparency. "Stop doing that! Stop panicking, Rin! Please."

I stared at Len, and he glared back at me, urging me to calm down.

I swallowed weakly. "Will you…will you leave me too?"

Len fixed me with his cerulean eyes, silently telling me the answer that I dreaded to hear. He squeezed my hand again. "Let's go back."

Still in shock over what had happened, I nodded mutely, and the world faded to black.

* * *

In the middle of the night, I was aroused from my restless dreams by the distant, eerie melody of a long forgotten song. When my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I sat up in bed and scanned the moon rays that spilled in through the dorm's empty windows, as if seeking for the answers that were always present in my mind now. The night was still, save for the sound of Gumi's steady breathing. With the absence of IA's soft snoring, Gumi's solitary breathing sounded far less relaxing, and hauntingly lonely.

IA had died several weeks ago. Her disappearance from the Second World had only been the first of many. Days after she disappeared before my eyes in the library, Rei Kagene went as well. I didn't know him personally, but I heard that he was a kind, well-loved boy.

It was a quiet passing. His roommates had bade him goodnight one night and found his bunk empty the next morning. "He was lucky," Kagene's friend Yuma told me solemnly one evening. "It could've been really painful or slow."

This wasn't the case for Teto Kasane, however. In the middle of class one day, the cheerful, energetic girl had suddenly started to scream in agony, hunched over and salivating uncontrollably. A crimson stain appeared on her stomach. She continued to scream incessantly in the nurse's office, for two long days, until she finally died.

For Piko Utatane, his death was much like IA's; he had become steadily weaker and weaker. For about three weeks, the sickly boy was bedridden, until he finally passed as well.

After Piko was the sweet and lady-like Kokone, and after Kokone was quiet Oliver. One by one, my schoolmates left me; some slipped quietly from my fingers like water, while others tore themselves away painfully.

I shook my head to rid myself of these thoughts. The reason I had woken up so abruptly was because of the song, and I refused to let myself focus on anything else. Otherwise, the tears would come.

Softly rising from bed, I slipped on a thin flannel jacket over my pajamas and walked to Gumi's bed, barefooted footsteps muffled against the carpet. It was only the two of us in the dorm; Neru had been locked in the nurse's office and no one was permitted to see her for the past week. This had taken a toll on Gumi, and without her best friend to bicker or laugh with, our dorm was always silent now. Even when I tried to comfort her or cheer her up, Gumi would rarely smile. It seemed that the girl's own happiness was dying along with her friend, and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it.

"Gumi," I whispered, gently shaking the girl awake.

Gumi groaned and cracked open a bleary eye. "Wassit?" And then she rolled over and fell asleep again.

"Gumi!" I shook her again. "Listen."

The mysterious melody sounded again. Suddenly wide awake, Gumi sprang up into a sitting position so abruptly that our foreheads collided.

"Ouch…" I grumbled, eyes watering in pain. Gumi rubbed her head, wincing. The music drifting into our dorm became even louder than before.

"Neru!" We simultaneously gasped, and hurtled out of the room.

As Gumi and I ran on, the music grew louder, and I realize that it emanated from the school music room. Gumi must've realized this too, because she gripped me by the elbow in a death-like grip and half dragged me to the place.

* * *

Neru, golden hair tumbling loosely down her back to the middle of her thighs, stood in the middle of the room with a guitar, bathed in moonlight. She was dressed in her school uniform. It was odd seeing her again, after she had been in the hospital for so long. All of the music equipment – speakers, piano, music stands, instrument cases – were pushed to the sides of the room, leaving a stage-like clearing for the singing girl. Now that I was in the room with her, I could finally hear the words she was singing; her voice, up close, was even more clear and enchanting.

… _I'm just a frail girl having an empty dream of happiness in this world of absolute solitude…_

 _The duration of the magic is too short._

 _The lonely girl's "dream" now reverts back to reality…_

 _Please never let go of my hand…_

When she finished, the girl slowly opened her golden eyes and smiled at us.

"Did you like it?"

Mutely, we nodded. Gumi's lips trembled.

Neru's smile grew even wider, and she turned to me. "You know what, Rin? I've always wanted to be a singer. Gumi knows this, of course, but I've never told anyone else."

Again, Gumi nodded, staring over Neru's shoulder at the wall, which was cluttered with both old and new photographs of grinning students with musical instruments. I swallowed a huge lump in my throat. "You…do?"

Neru sighed and strummed a minor chord on her guitar. "Yeah…ever since I was little, my dream was to be a music star. That's why I came here. To Vocaloid Academy, I mean. My parents wanted me to go that stuffy all girls' Utauloid School, but they don't have a music program. So…here I am. Dumb, right?" She laughed ruefully. Gumi hid her face with her tremulous hands, as if she thought that the tears streaming silently down her cheeks were shameful.

I shook my head, mouth paper dry. "No…it's not stupid at all. I-it's a beautiful dream, actually."

Neru raised her eyebrows, face lighting up. "You think?"

Again, I bobbed my head silently.

At this juncture, Gumi sniffed loudly, swiping at her eyes. "See, I _told_ you, Neru! I've _always_ told you to show your singing to others, but did you listen?" Gumi's voice cracked. "If only you sang to the public…you would've been famous by now! But you're stuck here now, with us…you complete _idiot_!" She said all this rapidly, the way someone bursts after years of biting their tongue.

Neru set her guitar gently on the ground. In one swift motion, she crossed the room and embraced Gumi tightly. In Neru's arms, the green haired girl shook, sniffling softly.

Sighing, Neru patted her trembling friend on the back. "You're an even bigger idiot than I am, Gumi." She leaned back to look Gumi in the eyes. "You know an even bigger reason why I chose to come to this school? It's because of my friends."

Finally, Gumi stopped crying. Eyes swollen, she stepped back from her friend, who turned to me.

"Rin?" Neru said. "You'll be alright, won't you?"

My vision blurred with unshed tears. "Alright? It's _you_ I'm worried about!"

Neru laughed. The sound echoed in the room, sounding as lonely as it was lovely. "You've become stronger, Rin. I wish the best for you."

Having said that, the blonde girl backed away from us. Picking her guitar up from the ground, she strummed a major chord. I noticed that her thin hands were slowly becoming translucent.

"Before I leave," Neru said. "Promise me you'll listen to my song. It's my last wish."

Gumi trembled all over, unable to speak. Stepping close to her, I draped an arm around Gumi's quivering shoulders. "Yeah," I croaked. "We'll listen."

Neru beamed at us. "Let this be my first and last song, then." After another chord on her guitar, Neru opened her mouth and sang. As Gumi and I listened, the most otherworldly tune spilled from the girl's lips. It was a different song from before. The first song was sweet and graceful with nostalgic undertones; this one was bittersweet and sounded like a mixture between a lullaby and a eulogy, which I knew it practically was.

 _The wind's voice tells of winter;_ _  
_ _I turn my ears to hear and my body shivers._ _  
_ _Next to me, your breath_ _  
_ _turns white. You must be cold._

 _This year too life has withered all away and_ _  
_ _impatiently awaits the spring soon to come._ _  
_ _While listening to the chain of life,_ _  
_ _it goes on budding in the light._

 _Knowing that I am fated to rot away,_ _  
_ _I want even more strongly_ _  
_ _to keep breathing, to keep singing._ _  
_ _I wish I too could leave something behind,_ _  
_ _proof of the life that I lived._

 _I don't want to make it a sad song._ _  
_ _Hey, please, just for this time now,_ _  
_ _I want to be smiling._ _  
_ _By your side,_ _  
_ _I want to be singing a gentle song._

 _I'm not lonely. You're here._ _  
_ _The warm hands that embrace me_ _  
_ _tell me so,_ _  
_ _even though I can't hear._ _  
_ _Your fingertips that touch me_ _  
_ _say "I love you."_

 _An ephemeral life rises to heaven and_ _  
_ _takes on the color of the melting snow._ _  
_ _Nothing remains,_ _  
_ _not even a soul._ _  
_ _Each and every thing..._

 _I want to dedicate to you_ _  
_ _a mournful farewell song._ _  
_ _In my last moments, I want to tell you ..._ _  
_ _Thank you._

As Neru held the last quavering note, I glanced at Gumi out of the corners of my eyes. She had stopped shaking; currently, she was staring at Neru, stock still.

Having finally finished her swan song – the last song she would ever sing, Neru closed her eyes and flashed a final smile at us, shining with satisfaction and innocent pride. As if time had stopped, the girl, now fully translucent, bent down in what looked like a bow. She was too weak to sustain the posture; for before she had the chance to straighten up completely, the singer collapsed. Before her transparent body could hit the ground, however, she disappeared.

The guitar clattered to the floor with an echoing thud.

"No…" Gumi mumbled, staring wildly at the spot Neru stood at moments before, as if willing for her best friend to come back. " _No_!" She flew shakily to the dropped guitar and fell to her knees, wracked with sobs. At last, her crying had become audible; her sobs turned to screams of grief that echoed off the walls of the music room. The happy students in the photographs smiled at us, as if mocking our sorrow.

My throat closed off; finally, the tears spilled out of my eyes. I slowly walked to Gumi and knelt down beside her, and we wept on each other's shoulders in the empty, abandoned stage of the music room.

We wept and wept and wept, because Neru Akita didn't just die that night. She shattered our hearts like mirrors and took them along with her.

* * *

 **So, anyway, I think I should probably explain things, because pretty much all of the reviews so far have said that it's confusing. Well it's supposed to be, but yeah...**

 **First World: In which everyone is NICE. Rin and her nice schoolmates go on a field trip, but the bus fell off a cliff and went KABOOM. Rin was the only survivor. She felt guilty and fell into depression. (Read the very first few lines of Chapter 1)**

 **Second World: In which everyone is NICE (basically the same as the 1st World). After Rin fell into depression in the First World, she was stuck in the Third World for a while, and then woke up in the Second World in Chapter 1. All of the students except Rin are rapidly dying one by one, but their bodies actually fade like ghosts. (Ia and Neru became transparent, and then disappeared). That's the most I can tell you for now, but you can probably infer what it means anyway.**

 **Third World: In which everyone is MEAN. Up until now, Rin mistakenly called it the 1st world, until Len showed her the ACTUAL one. Again, I can't spoil my own story. You'll have to read on to find out more! ;P**

 **The first song Neru sang was some lines (not together) from Magic Mirror by Hitoshizuku-P, sung by Rin Kagamine. The second was Proof of Life, also by Hitoshizuku-P, and sung by Rin and Len. I cut out a lot of the lines. And I got the lyrics from animelyrics dot com.**

 **DISCLAIMER: I don't own Vocaloid, any of the Vocaloid characters, or any Vocaloid songs. Only the plot is mine!**

 **Please review, everyone, and stay tuned for Chapter 7! GRACIAS!**

 **~Rikasa**


	7. Flare

**MERRY CHRISTMAS CHILDS! :) :) Hohoho**

 **I made it through finals...I'm alive! ahem ahem #failedbiology**

 **Thank you for reviewing: Neame kke and DontMindMe1234! *happily rides reindeer and falls off***

 **Like OMG I actually got more than one review this time! :D Keep up the good work, guys! ;)**

 **DISCLAIMER: I got many gifts today, but I didn't get Vocaloid.**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Flare**

 _Plink, plunk, plink._

"Are you okay, Luka?"

The pink haired girl snapped out of her lethargic trance and gazed at me in bewilderment, eyes clouded over like shattered crystals. The next moment, she returned to staring at the violent little raindrops pummeling the rattling windowpanes. Her rigid frame, seated motionlessly on the bunk bed and dimly lit by the window, resembled a statue – the sort of statue an artist would create to convey depression or heartbreak.

 _Plink, plunk, plink._

Brushing loose strands of stringy hair out of my face, I sighed and exchanged dark looks with Miku, who was changing the bed sheets. It had been a week since Neru Akita's death. The next morning, I discovered that Gumi had slipped away as well, having lost the will to live in a world without her best friend; I was the only one left in my dorm.

Each day, a blur of familiar faces vanished like sandcastles in the ocean: Mayu, Fukase, Yuuma, Rui, Sonika, Lily…

And the night before, it had been Meiko's turn…fierce, sharp-tongued, fiery-tempered Meiko Sakine. It was the very same Meiko who always quarreled with Kaito over trivialities like jokes and pranks, nosed into everyone's personal business and love life, and viciously pummeled anyone who dared to hurt her friends. It was the very same Meiko who was Luka's best friend; the one who was always with Luka, whom she playfully bickered with in good times and sought advice from in bad times.

 _Plink, plunk, plink._

Fierce Meiko had been washed away the night before. Since then, Luka's eyes had not left the windowpane once.

 _Plink._

The window had quite a nice view, to be honest. If the sky were not pouring rain, but shining sunlight down on the school grounds, the window of Miku's dormitory would flaunt a grand, impressive sight: thick, grassy fields, towering trees with sprawling branches that reached to the fourth floor, the vast sports stadium with its sparkling bleachers, and – Miku's personal favorite – the garden. If things had been normal – if this school had been whole – the three of us would have enjoyed playing a childish little game of our own creation: look outside and describe the first thing you see, and the others would have to guess what it was.

 _Plunk._

The night that Meiko had died, the night that Kaito had come out of the hospital wing to face us, his usual impish smile gone, Luka had stopped being…Luka. Just like how Gumi Megpoid followed Neru unto death, Luka's purpose to live had vanished along with Meiko.

 _Plink, plunk, plink._

There were six of us left in the school: Myself, Luka, Miku, Kaito, Gackupo, and Len. Refusing to rest alone in separate dorms with the voices of the dead whispering in our ears, we decided to bundle together like a lonely pack of wolves; Luka and I had moved into Miku's dorm, and Gackupo and Len into Kaito's. Like children, we were too frightened to venture into the empty, echoing corridors alone; we demanded to be accompanied by each other at all times. However, for the majority of each day, we remained huddled together in either our two dorms or the dining hall. We felt the necessity to be in each others' presence constantly, for fear that everything would disappear any minute – which it would, of course, given time.

 _Plunk, plink._

"I wonder when it'll stop…" Miku's voice trailed off, but I knew what she was thinking. By the time the weather cleared, she could be no more.

As the people I knew disappeared, one by one, the school shrank as well. As if it knew its occupants were leaving, its numerous hallways and classrooms disappeared. First, we had tried to visit our teachers, but discovered that the classrooms, along with its occupants, had gone. Next, the hallways shrank gradually; even as we walked along the corridors, looking for any signs of the rooms that used to exist, the hallways shimmered in front of our eyes and knocked us to our feet as they rapidly shriveled. Going by the way things were, by the time the rain stopped; the outdoor portion of the school grounds would probably be gone, too.

I plopped down besides Luka and tentatively nudged her with my arm. In response, she silently rested her head on my shoulder, albeit not tearing her gaze off the window.

 _Plink, plunk, plink._

The pitter, patter of rain mingled with a new sound: frantic footsteps. Miku's blankets tumbled out of her arms and onto the ground in one massive heap. Simultaneously, our faces paled. Who else could be running towards us except one of the boys, come to inform us of another death!

My teal-haired friend leapt two feet into the air and raced me across the room to the locked door – for we had inane fantasies, ominously made more tangible by our schoolmates' deaths, that dark creatures would spawn from the absence of the others and devour us. Only Luka remained seated on her bed, body tensed and waiting for the verdict that would surely come the very next moment.

I feverishly unbolted and threw open the door, nearly ripping it off its hinges. Len stood panting on the threshold, rumpled blond hair messily tumbling down to his shoulders. His pale, sweaty face glistened in contrast to his dark, cloudy eyes. He only gasped one word to us: " _Gackupo_."

Before either Miku or I could respond, a pink blur knocked us to the floor. Upon hearing Gackupo's name, Luka had immediately sprung back to life, flying toward the boy's dorm with a panicked intensity that one would never believe the girl staring at the rain just moments before could have had. Len, Miku, and I gawked at each other, and then followed closely at her heels. The pitter, patter of our footsteps overpowered that of the rain.

Pallid and trembling, Gackupo Kamui lay on the floor. His eyes could be seen moving rapidly behind his closed eyelids, and his emaciated chest heaved up and down, desperately trying yet failing to breathe; his long purple hair, loose on the ground, had turned a dull shade of gray that matched the sky outside. His entire torso had become translucent, so that I could see the monochrome pattern of the tile floor beneath him.

Kneeling at Gakupo's side, Kaito wrung his hands helplessly, murmuring half-hearted words of encouragement that were lost in the pain-stricken boy's ears. It wrecked my heart to see the infamously mischievous jokester so serious and miserable now. Upon seeing the grim sight, Luka knelt down beside Gackupo as well, pushing strands of thin hair away from his cold face.

At her gentle touch, Gackupo's eyelids fluttered open. "L-L…" He croaked.

"Shhh…" Luka said in a voice so gentle that, had I not seen her lips move, I wouldn't have recognized the speaker. "I'm here. Don't worry."

Standing next to me, Miku shook head to toe, tears rolling down her face. Len draped his arm around her shoulder, and I realized that his skin was slightly translucent, as well as Miku's. I sneaked a glance at my own body; every last inch of it was completely solid and healthy looking. A shiver ran down my spine.

"L…Luka…" Gakupo whispered.

"Don't worry. You'll be fine." Luka's voice quivered at her own lie.

"Luka…look at me…"

The girl gazed into the eyes of the dying boy. He raised a tremulous hand to her, and she pressed it to her cheek with her own trembling ones.

"I…I was annoying, wasn't I?" Gackupo said.

"No, you weren't." Luka swallowed hard, clutching Gackupo's hand even tighter. She was choking back sobs. "I'm sorry."

"Did you hate me?"

"Never," Luka said.

Gackupo sighed. His hair remained colorless and his eyes remained glassy, but his face lit up with a warm glow, as if Luka's voice had washed the pain away. At the girl's words, the two seemed to exchange more questions and answers, albeit silently; none of us could understand except for them.

"Luka…I love you…"

Still holding onto Gakupo's hand, Luka closed her eyes. "I love you too."

And then her hand was gripping onto thin air. There was nobody lying on the floor anymore.

 _Plink, plunk, plink._

The number of tears that fell from Luka's eyes outnumbered those from the skies.

* * *

Two days after Gackupo's death, I spotted a lone figure on the school rooftop, from my lonely perch in what was left of the library. I crouched on the thin, carpeted floor on the exact spot where I had first found IA sobbing. There were only two bookshelves left: the ones that surrounded my spot on both sides. Their contents were gone, though; but if one squinted hard enough, they could catch rows upon rows of shimmering titles and swimming words. The floor was similar; it resembled a crumbling mosaic. Some pieces had disappeared, leaving behind a gaping chasm I couldn't fathom the depth of, while other pieces remained precariously.

I saw the figure through the chasmal holes in the walls - for instead of holding windows and posters, the wall was crumbling just like the bookshelves and floor. Silhouetted against the pounding torrents of rain, the figure - for what else could I call it?- stood rigid on top of the railing that lined the rooftop. It was evidently struggling to keep its balance amidst the violent hurricane of winds that accompanied the rain. It was tall and thin, like the figure of formerly robust person who had recently deteriorated into an emaciated skeleton. A long curtain of hair whipped about the person's face, no doubt increasing the difficulty it had in maintaining balance. My eyes widened.

"LUKA!"

Heart racing, I scrambled to my feet and scurried about, looking for solid pieces of floor I could step on. I raked my mind: how had I managed to get to my spot in the library in the first place? Remembering the route was no trouble; however, the problem was that the floor had deteriorated even further while I had sat sulking in my corner. My foot slipped; I lurched forward, scraping my knees. Behind me, I heard the sickening crunch of gravel as debris fell down, down, down into the abyss. Ignoring the smarting pain creeping up my legs, I jumped up once again and clambered out of the library. Before passing through the yawning hole that was the doorway, I chanced another glance at Luka's figure; save for her wildly flying hair, she hadn't moved an inch.

There was no time to seek help from any of the other three. I mentally reprimanded myself; how could it be that the moment I decided to spend some time alone, I needed the others' help? The only thing I could do at this point was to calm Luka and convince her to step down from the railing. Simply put, I hoped that I could stop her - if begging worked - from jumping to her death. My footsteps pounded in sync with my thundering heartbeat as I flew up the spiraling staircase leading to the roof, around and around and around. Each step I took rattled the steps, and I wondered if they would disappear before I came back - what if I was trapped on the rooftop forever? Then I would have no choice but to eventually jump.

The staircase spiraled on and on - out of control, out of time, out of luck…

Visions of the school bus from the First World flickered across my burning mind, more vivid than the world I was currently in…of Len's corpse bent protectively over me…of the first time I lost everyone...smoke and darkness and chaos and fire…

It was my fault. It was all my fault. Perhaps I deserved to return to the Third World and be punished by my loved ones for letting them slip through my grasp so carelessly. Anything would satisfy me, as long as I could have all my friends back - even if they turned on me. By this time, I was so aggrieved that I would rather be hurt by their words and actions than by their deaths.

Adrenaline pulsing through my veins, I burst through the shattered doors and into the rain. Swaying precariously upon the balcony, Luka turned towards me. Her glassy eyes widened. As if preparing to jump, her legs bent slowly and hesitantly. I immediately halted in my tracks. We stood on opposite sides of the roof, so many feet apart yet so close.

"Luka…" I said softly, so softly that it was a wonder I could be heard over the thick downpour. "Please…"

With a movement so minuscule that I barely caught it, Luka shook her head at me. Cracked and bleeding, her bare feet trembled on top of the railing – I supposed she must have been frozen stiff after standing in the rain for such a long time. Our hair flew uncontrollably about and our uniforms slapped against our bodies in the wind, yet both of us held still, refusing to relent. Silently, Luka gazed at me imploringly, telling me to let her go, let her die. But I merely shook my head back at her, refusing to let go of another friend when I finally had the chance to do something about it for once.

The girl's legs bent even further.

"Luka," I repeated more urgently, furiously shaking large droplets from my face. "Stop! Don't jump-"

"No…" she gasped. "Rin, I…"

"Don't jump. Please don't jump!" I pleaded.

Luka's voice cracked. "I...please, Rin, leave me alone-"

"NO! You can't do this-"

"I'm sorry, Rin-"

"You don't want to die! _You don't! You-_ "

"Meiko and Gackupo are dead!" Luka shrieked, voice completely devoid of the reason and serenity that was so characteristic of her. "Why wouldn't I?!"

There was silence, save for the drumming of the violent droplets on the cracked cement floor. I shivered, feeling the droplets beating down upon my back. They left behind an icy sensation. "Meiko and Gackupo," I said, "wouldn't want you to do this."

Again, silence. Luka stared at me in shock as if seeing me clearly for the first time in her life. "Rin, you don't-"

"Understand?" I finished her sentence. "Maybe I don't. But you've always been the understanding one yourself. I think it's time you let someone else help you now." I stepped closer.

Grinding her teeth, Luka ran her fingers through her tangled, windswept pink hair. "Rin...you're not _supposed_ to help anyone here!"

My breath caught. "I…what?"

"This is why the Second World-" She abruptly stopped, cupping her hands over her mouth and turning her face upwards to the grieving sky. "Listen, Rin. Just…just leave. There's nothing you can do."

"So do you expect me to just leave and let you commit suicide?" I snapped, blinking rain and tears out of my eyes.

"I-"

"If Meiko were here," I said. "She would physically drag you down if she had to punch you!"

Luka's lips tightened, but I merely continued: "And Gackupo! What would _he_ say? He would be heartbroken if you..." My voice trailed off mid sentence; I had come off as much harsher than I intended to be.

Lost for words, the pink-haired girl opened her mouth and closed it. The rain had finally begun to slow down; the sky had seemingly cried itself out of its tantrum and was now drained of energy.

I walked towards the girl and held out a surprisingly steady hand to her. "Step down, Luka. Please."

"Rin…"

"You'll be fine."

Shaking on top of the railing, she stared at me. She stared at the ground. She stared at the sky. And after a moment that lasted an eternity, she finally hopped down from the balcony.

I let out a breath of relief. In one swift motion, Luka wrapped me tightly in her arms. And as the first ray of sunshine trickled down to us, shining upon our embrace, it lit upon her face like the smile she was now wearing.

"Thank you, Rin."

I blinked and started. I was standing alone on the school rooftop.

* * *

"Can we…" Miku swallowed, voice raspy and hoarse with unshed tears. "Can we all stay in the cafeteria tonight?"

Len, Kaito, and I silently nodded. After all, we could hardly go back to our rooms; now that Luka had gone, the school had shrunken to only one tangible, accessible room. Even the dining hall, however, pressed on our eyes like dark fog. Like the shimmering mirage of a stream to a traveller dying of thirst in the desert, the lunch tables swam in and out of focus. Even the cold tile floor, walls, and ceiling swayed tauntingly so that we didn't dare to stand up, for fear of falling. It was only a matter of time before the Second World vanished entirely.

We didn't sleep at all. Instead, the four of us sat in a circle on the wavering floor, staring glumly into space. I wondered what the others were thinking. Were they angry at me for being the only one free of the mysterious curse that was erasing the Second World? While the others faced oblivion, what I feared was losing them. I didn't want become alone again.

Sitting besides me with his knees pulled to his chest, Len closed his eyes, wide awake yet unwilling to talk. His rested his open, translucent hand, palm facing up, besides me; I felt an urge to tuck my own hand in his, but couldn't quite bring myself to. Miku crouched in a fetal position, rolled up into a tiny ball. Her long teal hair, loose from its usual pigtails, trailed behind her onto the floor, but it was so transparent that I couldn't see where her hair ended. I couldn't see her face, either - she didn't want anyone to - but I was sure that she was crying.

Kaito was a different story. While the other two seemed miserable and gloomy, his whole body screamed signs of nervous anxiety. Again and again, he ran his hands through his hair with increasing agitation each time. His dark eyes roamed around the room - if it could still be called that - scanned over each of us, then returned to searching the room again. The utter, impenetrable silence was constantly interrupted by his fidgeting and twitching. And in the middle of the night, while the other three of us dozed on and off in our miserable stupor, Kaito finally rose and paced about the room, avoiding the gaping holes where tile pieces were supposed to be.

Striding over to a window, Kaito peered outside into the night. In the dim moonlight, I could see his gaunt figure, or rather, the transparency of it. He stood still for a long time, gazing at the empty sky - for even the stars and clouds had disappeared. Noticing my gaze, Kaito's eyes slid over his own disappearing body. I saw his mouth open in horror. His entire torso was see-through now, even more so than Gackupo's had been when the purple-haired boy had died. To my surprise, however, a shadow of Kaito's old grin crept onto his face.

"You guys…" Kaito's soft voice echoed in the hall, sounding hoarse and unnatural. It had been hours since anyone had last spoken. "Don't you think this is getting a little... boring?"

Miku sniffed, finally raising her head up. Her eyes were rimmed with red. "At a time like this, you're thinking about _boring_?"

Turning his back on the feeble moon, the blue-haired boy calmly replied, "You lot are so glum."

"And why do you think that is?" Miku snapped.

Kaito merely smiled, finally looking similar to how he used to. "Well, there's no changing the inevitable. Let's face it, it's either you or me or Len next."

Len's eyes jerked open. "What're you going on about, Kaito?"

The boy by the window grinned in reply. "You two...you can have proper funerals if you want. Like, the sad, all-black kind. Go and be sad! I don't care!" He stepped forward and raised his arms. I lifted my eyes to the ceiling and gasped. It was completely gone, replaced by the empty, suffocating, jet blanket that was the sky.

"I'll go," Kaito Shion said. " _With a flare_!"

His face lit up with a smile brighter than the moon ever was. And suddenly, an explosion of color illuminated the Second World.

* * *

 **Kaito: I SET FIRE TO THE RAIN**

 **Rin:**

 **Luka: I WHIP MY HAIR BACK AND FORTH**

 **Len:**

 **GACKUPO: LOVE CAN TOUCH US ONE TIME AND LAST FOR A LIFE TIME**

 **Miku:**

 **Kaito:**

 **Kaito: _CUZ BABY YOU'RE A FIREWORK_**

 **Santa:**

 **So anyway...yah. Let's see...did I explain anything important in this chapter? Nope. *evil laugh* Read on and find out... ;P**

 **You know (READ THIS ISH MUY IMPORTANTE)...I did really crappy planning for this story. Like, REALLY crappy. The plot line is so complex, and luckily, it didn't deviate too much from what was originally planned. But it's SOOOO rushed. That's why whenever someone dies, I include such a long scene cuz _oh so sad sob sob._ But since I forgot to include character development, it SUCKS! T-T Maybe I will rewrite this in the future. What do you guys think? Is it really that bad?**

 ***Hint: revieeeeeeeeeeeeew**

 **Again, merry Christmas everyone, even to those silent readers of mine! (I guess happy Hanukkah if you're Jewish?) Stay tuned for chapter 8! HOHOHO**


	8. Circle You, Circle You

**Hi, guys...it's been half a year. School ended yesterday. I'm alive. *gets killed* *wonders if anyone will still read this story***

 ***...probably not***

 ***cries***

 ***sorry for not uploading T_T***

 **Thank you for reviewing: GlitteryMage! *happily burns all schoolwork and supplies***

 **DISCLAIMER: I don't own Vocaloid.**

* * *

 **Chapter 8: _Circle You, Circle You_**

" _No…"_

Was this a dream? Or was it a nightmare?

" _Please…" She was trapped in her own lifeless, immobile body; yet her eyes moved rapidly underneath her eyelids, trying to keep up with her restless mind. She knew where she was and what had happened to her, yet she didn't know…_

" _Poor girl…"_

" _The only survivor…"_

" _Maybe it's better if she doesn't wake up…"_

No nightmare could be this terrible. She must have died and gone to hell…

But why would she go to hell? Why? What had she ever done wrong?

And then...the horrifying realization dawned on her.

" _He was found with his mangled body shielding her…"_

" _A tragic hero…"_

" _True love…"_

" _Len Kagamine, sixteen years."_

Len had died because of her. She killed him. She had killed everyone she loved. She deserved this. Deserved to be punished. Deserved to be imprisoned in her own nightmares, in her own comatose body. She deserved to never wake up.

Was this a nightmare? She sincerely hoped it was...because she hoped it wasn't real.

* * *

 _Boom._

Vibrant flowers bloomed in the sable garden of the night sky, washing the remnants of the Second World in a patchwork of light.

 _Boom. Boom._

I gasped when I saw it: a small yet brilliant rose. Its pink petals trembled slightly, as if a light summer breeze was dancing across it. The flower appeared in a flash and hovered up above our heads for a brief moment, before gracefully dissipating into sparks. _IA._

The next two fireworks: a pair that appeared at the same time. One was golden at the core, shining as radiantly as the sun; the other an emerald green, darker than the other, yet still as luminous. The two colors blended together, creating an elegant swirling pattern that flashed across the sky _Neru and Gumi._

As each firework appeared, vivid memories of my friends flashed across my mind. A robust scarlet fire that let loose a gunshot sound: Meiko. A bright magenta that seemed to tremble with excitement in the sky: Teto. The very heavens had become a blank canvas, being covered by different colors, the colors of my friends.

Another pair of fireworks that exploded at the same time: an elegant pink one, and a violet one. As they appeared and started to fall, they drew closer and closer to each other until they entwined and formed the shape of a tremulous, beating heart, pumping life into the skies. _Luka and Gackupo_.

"It's beautiful," gasped Miku's voice beside me. She and Len were standing at my side. Miku had ceased her crying, and was now staring awestruck at Kaito's artwork. Len gazed longingly at the momentary heart formed by the pink and purple fireworks, the light reflected in his eyes.

Finally, Kaito, who had his face turned upward with his eyes closed, looked back at us and smiled for the last time.

"Thank you," he said.

The sky was washed again in light, this time in a magnificent blue. The biggest firework yet had appeared, one of a deep sapphire hue that made it seem as if it was daytime. The color illuminated everything, washing the Second World in the color of the ocean. And by the time it finally faded, Kaito was gone, leaving only stars behind him.

There was no sky anymore. There was no school, no ground, and no walls. With only Miku and Len left to sustain the Second World, everything had become a dream: wherever I looked, I could only see shimmering blue, the remnants of Kaito's firework. In the corners of my eyes, I thought I could see specks of lights, but whenever I turned to look, they would disappear.

This was just like a dream, and I desperately hoped it would never end.

The floor we stood on resembled the surface of a lake, but it wasn't water; it was made of the same misty light that enveloped us all over. However, the light shined so brightly that I almost felt that if I looked hard enough, it could show me my reflection, like a mirror.

I tore my eyes away from my feet and glanced at my two remaining friends. Len was gazing at his body, which had become so transparent that I could hardly see him anymore; upon my glance, he looked up and offered me a weak smile. On the other hand, Miku had fallen to her knees and was sifting her hands through the mist that obscured the floor – if there was one.

"Miku?" Tentatively, I crouched down beside my best friend and put a hand on her shoulder. She turned and fixed me with her wide, frantic eyes.

"The flowers, Rin, the flowers!"

"I…what?" I looked to Miku's searching hands, but could not see them because of the mist.

Miku bit her lip; she was so translucent that, probably because of the shimmering effect of the atmosphere around us, she seemed to have turned completely turquoise. "Where are the flowers?"

"Miku…" my voice trailed off, and I looked to Len. He was staring off to the distance. Again, specks of light flashed in my peripheral vision.

At this juncture, Len turned and fixed his eyes on Miku. His face was pale, and his eyes were teary. "Is it time already?"

Miku paused in her search for the flowers in the mist, and – to my surprise – broke into a small smile. "It's okay. You'll be fine."

"No!" I choked. "It won't be fine! You can't die, alright? You're the two people I love the most, why do I have to lose you too? Don't go! Please. I'm begging you!"

Silence.

Finally, Miku stood up, throwing her weak, trembling arms around me. "Don't be upset, Rin. Don't cry. Len will explain everything to you. Alright?"

Len nodded mutely.

Again, her lips twitched upward in a halfhearted grin. "We love you, Rin, we really do. All of us are counting on you to be strong. Don't ever forget that." And her arms left me.

The teal-haired girl looked down and gasped. "Look! There are flowers again."

I looked and, indeed, saw a patch of brilliant pink among all the misty blue. Miku reached down and picked a flower, proudly holding it out to us. Five of the six petals looked like the softest silk; the sixth was missing. The flower was beautiful in an imperfect, natural way that made it even more perfect. Miku held it up to her nose and inhaled the sweet aroma.

"Good luck, you two." And the girl and her flowers disappeared.

"NO!" I fell to my knees, burying my face in my hands. As my throat closed up, suffocating me, killing off all the words I wished to speak; so did my world, killing off all my loved ones. I had always felt so small, being only one girl among all the people that lived in the world; but now I felt even smaller, knowing that, soon, I would be the only one left.

Because Len was going to disappear as well.

Why? Why would this happen? And why would it have to happen to them? Why didn't it happen to _me?_

"Yes," said a voice behind me. "You should've died instead."

Whirling around, I caught a glimpse of what looked like a dark cemetery – but with no tombstones in sight - before I was knocked to the ground.

"Rin…why did you do this to us?"

"How could you?

"You killed us…"

Panicking, I tried to stand up, but fell again. My chest heaved up and down. From the dark came hundreds – thousands – of faces, all leering at me. They were the faces of skeletons, accompanied by screeching voices and reaching, groping hands. I was trapped, encircled by a group of vengeful corpses…the corpses of my friends.

Directly in front of me…stood _him_.

"No…" I whispered.

Len's corpse flashed a bloody grin at me, sunken eyes rolling madly. "Tell me, Rin, how does it feel knowing hundreds of people are dead because of you? _Huh?_ " There was something dripping from his mouth – was it blood? Saliva? I couldn't tell in this darkness.

Every corpse laughed, their voices jarring and grating against my eardrums. Their malicious whispers ran up and down my back, chilling me to the core. I hugged myself, cowering in the center of the circle. Everywhere I looked, mutilated corpses jeered back at me, gazes full of malice. Full of bloodlust. Full of _hate._

My heart stopped. They were here to punish me.

 _Len_. Unconsciously, my lips formed the word, sending me an iota of comfort, a small beam of goodness amidst this darkness and evil.

 _Len,_ I mouthed again. If I was going to die, I wanted his name to be the last word I spoke.

 _Len_. I never had the chance to tell him how much I loved him. How beautiful he was. How _kind._

As the corpse in front of me snarled, stretching out a bloodied, decomposing hand to me, I finally realized. I finally knew what it truly was, and why it was there. And as soon as the realization struck me, two other things happened: first, a surge of doubt smothered the realization and tore it to pieces, strengthened by a renewed sense of guilt.

Second: I felt Len shaking my shoulders, frantically calling my name.

"Rin."

I turned to look at the boy's worried expression. Len's face was ghostly pale with dark circles under his eyes, and his once golden-blond hair looked stringy and white; but his eyes burned fiercely with life…with power.

"You…" I gulped for air. "You're dead."

"Please…" Len said, shaking his head. "Rin, listen to me."

"You're dead!" My voice shook. "You're dead, you're dead. Everyone's dead. It's all my fault, I killed them, I killed you-"

"Rin!"

"You're dead! I killed you! I'm so sorry, it's all my fault! It should've been me instead-"

"Stop!" Len cupped my face in his thin hands and turned the full brunt of his piercing gaze on me. "Rin look at me. Look at me."

I stared at him. He was pale and emaciated like a corpse, yet his hands were warm on my face. Despite his deathly appearance, there was a faint golden glow emitting from his skin…he wasn't a ghost. He was an angel: _my_ angel.

"Look at me," Len reiterated. "You have to listen to what I have to say. _Please_."

 _My guardian angel_ …Slowly, I nodded, allowing his soft, smooth voice to wash over me, warming my heart.

"I'm going to explain everything to you," Len said, tucking a stray piece of hair behind my ear. "The three worlds…everyone's spirits…you have to know. You have to _believe_ me.

"In the real world," he began. "We were so happy. Everyone…Miku, Kaito, Gackupo, Luka, Neru, IA, Meiko…we were all like one family. We all loved each other. We all loved you, and we always will. Nothing is your fault.

"When all of us went on that field trip, the bus skidded down a cliff and exploded at the bottom. None of us stood a chance. But you…you were the strongest one of us all. You alone survived. And since we're a family…we all decided to help you. To protect you. If you were the only one who had a chance, then we were going to make sure you survived.

"But that chance was very slim. When all our bodies were found by rescuers, you were hardly more than a corpse. You fell into a coma for months, and you didn't wake up. You still haven't, even now. You must have realized what happened to the rest of us, so you were overcome by guilt and depression. If you'd tried to wake up as soon as you could, you could've done so easily…but it's been so long that, if you tried now, it wouldn't be so simple…

"I knew that you were giving yourself a hard time. But I never could've imagined that you created a world of your own, the Second World, to surround yourself with fake images of everyone, of the school. But perhaps you didn't do it on purpose…maybe it was just your guilt. Because, since you were so depressed, you used the Second World to punish yourself. You convinced yourself that everyone hated you, that we blamed you for our deaths. Maybe that's the reason you wouldn't wake up: because you used up all your energy to create the Second World. It's amazing, really…it took everyone's willpower to create the Third World.

"I couldn't stand seeing you like that. You were always so strong, so cheerful…but in the Second World, you became a girl no one recognized. It pained me to see you like that, to see _myself_ like that, hurting you so much…you _do_ realize that I would never do anything like that in real life, right, Rin? _Right_? How could anyone hurt you? You've never done anything to hurt someone!

"So I came back. I wanted to help you. Even if I couldn't make you wake up and return to the First World, I could take you out of the Second World for small amounts of time. I was thinking, if I could pretend that nothing had happened, that we were still in the real world, then you could have time to gain strength…and when the time came, you would be able to wake up again. But to be able to create an exact replica of the First World…I needed help. And I got it. Everyone from school that died, Rin…everyone was willing to help. Together, we used the last remnants of our spirits to create the Third World."

Len paused. A glimmer of pride shone on his face. "And it was wonderful, wasn't it, Rin? It almost worked out…

"But our energy could only last so long. One by one, we started to disappear…we couldn't hold off our own deaths any longer. And _you_ …what were _you_ doing? You were actually helping _us_ , when it was supposed to be the other way around! You helped each and every single one of us make peace with our regrets, our mistakes…you helped us move on! Really, Rin…sometimes, you are too kind for your own good.

"You've done so much for us, Rin. So now, you have to do something for yourself. This place…this world that you've created? It's just your own demon. All of it is _your_ making, because you are the only one who blames yourself for what happened. For yourself, for us…please conquer it, Rin. Please wake up."

My eyes widened. "I…made the Second World?"

"Yes," Len said. "And only you can destroy it."

He started to fade.

"Wait!" I cried. "Don't go…"

Len gently kissed me on the forehead, and then looked into my eyes one last time. "I love you, Rin. Good luck."

And with that, he was gone. And once again, I was at the center of my demons' circle.

But I wasn't scared now. I wasn't scared, because I wasn't alone anymore.

Len was with me, and so were all of my friends. And although I had never realized it, it finally came to me now: they had always been supporting me. And they always would.

 _I am not afraid._

* * *

 **Hello again, dear readers (if you're there). Goodbye, dear readers.**

 **BTW, I changed my name to Raebelle. But I'm probably really easy to recognize, because of my crappy writing skills and eccentric commentary...XD**

 **Please review, everyone, and stay tuned for Chapter 9 (which will _probably_ be the last one)! I SWEAR I will update within this month! I WILL, I WILL, I WILL! THANK YOU!**

 **~Raebelle**


	9. Mirror

**Hi children...I'm actually uploading on time for once. Wow. (even though it's 12:30 right now) *shrugs***

 **Thank you for reviewing: lindenwould and guest! I love you guys! You're my heroes! :D *throws confetti and trips***

 **DISCLAIMER: Me no owns Vocaloid.**

* * *

 **Finale: _Mirror_**

"You should've died instead."

And there he was. Blood dripping down his chin, he flashed me a maniacal grin. Bulging eyes rolled around in his eye sockets, and he swayed as he made his way towards me.

I stumbled backwards, only to have my arms caught by ice-cold hands. Third-world Miku stared at me coldly with her one working eye. He long teal hair had fallen out of its usual pigtails, and her rosy cheeks had gone, leaving behind nothing but a skeletal face. As her jagged, rotted nails dug into my skin, I felt a vision being forced into my mind. I saw my best friend lying motionless on the ground, blood smeared across her head. Her blank, wide eyes gazed unseeingly at the sky, reflecting the dark abyss.

More hands grabbed me, making me see what they went through, _feel_ what they went through. I caught a glimpse of blue hair, and my entire body caught in flames, burning me from the inside out. Pink and purple: two entwined corpses, mutilated beyond recognition. Gold: first, my fingers, hands, and arms dissipated; until my whole body dissolved and I was only floating in a black ocean, numb and unfeeling. Silver: an unseen force pressed down on my neck, choking me until I coughed up blood, until I was about to snap-

Panting, I wrenched myself away from the hands and tumbled onto the cold, hard cement. There was patchwork of red finger marks across my skin, from my shoulders to my fingertips. My body ached all over, and I clutched my stomach, gasping for air.

Someone's foot struck the ground, inches from my downturned face. Third world Len slowly bent down until we were face level.

"Do you see now, Rin? Do you see what we went through?"

I swallowed.

"…because of you?"

His eyes glinted cruelly in the dark, the stark opposite of the Len I knew. As the boy reached out a bloodstained hand for me, I flinched and turned away, only to find myself encircled by the rest of the monsters.

As if in slow motion, I watched as Len's hand came closer and closer. He cupped my chin and forced my face closer, plunging me into a memory…the worst one of all.

" _Len!"_

 _My trembling hands cupped his pale, cut face._

" _Oh my god…Len!"_

 _The boy's chest heaved up and down, up and down, up and down. His eyelids fluttered weakly like flickering candles about to be blown out._

" _No…" I murmured. "No! Don't do this to me. Please be alright. You're going to be fine, please don't die! PLEASE!" Frantically, I started to rip off pieces of my shirt and attempted to stem the blood gushing from his wounds. But it was no use; there were simply too many._

 _Heaving one last rattling breath, Len looked at me for the last time. He didn't say anything; nor did he make any gesture. He couldn't. But with that one, final look, I saw pure joy in his eyes. With that one look, he told me he was happy…simply because I was there. As the life drained out of Len's body, a faint smile lingered on his bloodied face._

" _No!" I choked. "No no no…don't leave me! Len! Come back. Please! LEN!"_

 _I ran my hands over Len's chest, futilely searching for breathing, a heartbeat, anything. He was dead. My desperate fingers traced over his face: his closed eyes, his upward-curving mouth, and his colorless cheeks…dead. Stroking Len's matted hair, I kissed his cold, smooth forehead, tears sliding down my face and dropping onto his so that it looked like he was crying as well._

 _Dead. Dead. Dead._

 _A mist – a numbing blankness – filled my head. I couldn't see or hear anything, yet the image of Len's face burned itself into my mind. Voices hissed in my ears._

"… _your fault…"_

"… _repent…"_

"… _how could you…"_

"… _should've been you…"_

 _No. No, this was so wrong…_

"… _die…"_

" _Die…"_

" _DIE!"_

 _No! Len told me to stay strong. How could I die, after promising him that I would be strong? After promising everyone? How could I possibly die and throw away the life for which my friends had sacrificed so much to save?_

" _DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE-"_

"No!" I slapped away the corpse's hand and stood up, glaring at the circle of demons around me. "No, I will _not_ die! I'm not scared of you!"

My breath caught. The skeleton in front of me – Len's skeleton – stared at me. I knew he sensed the quaver in my voice, the trembling in my legs. He heard my heart pounding, saw me try in vain to swallow.

"It should've been you."

I shook my head vigorously, trying to shake off my fear.

I was all alone. I was a little raft in a sea of darkness, desperately trying to keep afloat above the murderous, hungry waters.

Where was my lifeline? Where was the land? Where was I trying to go?

" _Rin, are you alright?"_

" _Read me a story, Rin!"_

" _Promise me you'll be okay."_

" _Thank you, Rin."_

" _Look! Flowers. They're beautiful, aren't they?"_

"It should've been-"

"NO!" I shrieked. My voice echoed. Clenching my fists, I straightened up and gazed defiantly around me.

" _I'm with you."_

 _Len…_

The skeletons started to shimmer. A bone-chilling gust of wind swept through the graveyard, seeping into my skin, but I paid no heed to it. The little raft had finally found a distant speck of land upon the horizon. It was old and battered, but it was still afloat. And it was almost home.

"You," I shouted above the wind, "are mydemons. I won't let you hurt me anymore. I won't let you trap me anymore. _You have to GO!_ "

I gritted my teeth, preparing myself for a fight. But to my surprise, the scene before me vanished.

I was standing on the inside of a set of open gates: the gates of my school. Beyond the gates lay the outside world – the First World. I didn't know how I knew…I merely sensed it. Fog filled the air around me, so I couldn't see anything but the gates themselves, but once again, I could hear voices calling to me. This time, they were the voices of my friends – calling to me. Beckoning for me to come home.

I placed a hand over my chest, trying to calm myself. I couldn't believe it…I was going home.

Suddenly, I tensed and turned around, away from the gates, for I had sensed something else. My eyes narrowed. A lone figure appeared out of the fog and walked up to me: Third World Len. He was no longer a corpse, yet his body had a faint glow to it, as if to remind me that he was just a demon…a spirit.

"How…how are you still…?" My voice trailed off.

Len tilted his head, a knowing smirk on his face. But this time, his expression bore no sign of malice – only a grudging acceptance. It was the face of an opponent surrendering. It was the face of a soldier dying on a battlefield, and facing the loss with unbreakable pride.

"Are you really waking up now?" He said, with both incredulity and defiance present in his voice. "Your friends are still dead, you know. Are you really ready to face that?"

My jaw dropped.

Len opened his mouth to speak again, but I cut him off.

"Yes," I said, squinting at the fog, trying to see if there were more figures – there weren't. It was only me and the gates, with Third World Len in between. I turned back to Len, avoiding his gaze. "I…I'm ready. I'm ready to go back to the First World. Don't stop me."

I took a deep breath, wondering what he would do next. Would he transform into a terrifying monster and prevent me from leaving? Would he attack me, like before? Torment me? Would he _kill_ me?

To my surprise, Len laughed; but it wasn't a simple chuckle or snort. It wasn't even a typical villain laugh. Third World Len laughed, doubled up and red faced, like there was no tomorrow. He laughed as if he had never laughed before, and would never laugh again. He laughed like a child that had dreamed up such a splendid joke that he couldn't tell it. And somehow, I had a feeling that that joke…was me.

"Oh. My. God." I said through clenched teeth, attempting to hide my bewilderment with a caustic demeanor. "What now? What other horrors have you thought up?"

Wiping tears out of his eyes, Third World Len straightened up and gasped for breath. "Are you _stupid_? Shouldn't you have figured out this whole thing by now?"

"What?"

"This." He gestured with his arm at the swirling fog surrounding us. "The Third World."

"I…made it."

"Exactly," said Len. "So what do you think that makes _me?_ "

Irritation tickled my nerves. "Look," I snapped. "I'm going back to the First World whether you like it or not. You can't stop me! That's why you're here, I assume? To stop me?"

Len raised his eyebrows. "Why would I try to stop you?"

"Are you kidding me?!"

Again, Len laughed. "My friend, I'm here to…I guess you could call it making peace with you.

"Making peace?"

His smile faded, and was replaced by a grave, solemn look. It was the first sincere expression I had ever seen him wear. Now, he looked much more like the real Len – the Len I knew and loved. "Rin, look at me. Look at my face. Do you really see Len?"

Hesitantly, I met his gaze. In the reflection of his blue eyes, I saw a girl whom I barely recognized. She was fierce and courageous, the complete opposite of what I felt like at the moment. Tearing my eyes away from her, I stepped back…and found myself looking at the same girl again.

Standing in front of me…was my reflection.

"What…" I said. "I don't understand."

The girl smiled. Her expression was almost sweet, but behind the smile, there was a hardened, bitter look. She had the beautiful yet terrifying face of a fierce warrior who was proud to have blood on hands. She had the wise, cold eyes of a queen who had complete control, and whose respect had to be fought for. She had the proud, bland smile that a strong one wore upon finally meeting an even stronger person. Yet, there she stood in front of me, the exact same size as me down to the very last inch, the last strand of hair.

"Finally opened your eyes, my friend?" The girl said.

"Who are you?" But somehow, I already knew the answer, even before she told me.

"You are me, and I am you," she said. "We are one. You can forget me or hide me, but you can never make me disappear."

And then, my mirror stepped forward and clasped my hands in hers. "I can't kill you, but I can hurt you…as well as help you."

I stared at my hands in her grasp. "You mean…I did this, to myself?"

She tilted her head and scrutinized me. "Len told you that you created the Third World, did he not? Of course, everyone has a Third World from the moment they're born. You've always been a rather thoughtful girl, so we've seen each other quite often…though you've never realized it. But it was only after you fell into depression…that you became trapped here."

I bit my lip. "Why did you hurt me, then?"

"Because you let me."

Her response, so cruel and so blunt, was said in such a gentle manner that I was rendered speechless.

"But," my mirror continued, "If you let me help you, I will give you all the strength and courage you need. I will heal you, and help you move on. I am part of you, Rin; I come from the strongest part of you – your soul. If you let me hurt you, I'll break your spirit and torment you for the rest of your life. But if you have the courage, I will help you."

I gazed around me, trying and failing to see through the fog. But there was no need, for now I knew what lay beyond it. Lost hopes, dreams, nightmares…not worth finding and crying over.

I took a deep breath, a smile creeping up on my face.

"Ready?"

"Ready."

Hand in hand, my mirror and I stepped out of the Third World and into the First. At long last, it was time to return.

Beyond the gates lay my life. I had been shut out far too long. Now, it was time for me to return, for I needed to live on. I needed to have my loved ones live on inside of me.

Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw a boy with kind blue eyes and golden hair wave goodbye to me.

 _Thank you, Len._

* * *

 **Yes! Thank you Len, for being an awesome fictional character I can use and abuse! Thank you, my wonderful readers, for sticking through to the very end! I'm gonna miss this burden...ah, I mean story. XD Honestly though, I'm SO proud of myself right now. (But I'm even more surprised, that I actually managed to get off my lazy procrastinating butt and finish this)**

 **Please review, everyone! THANK YOU! *throws confetti and cries happy tears***

 **~Raebelle**


End file.
